Qass 
Book 



SELECTION 



BISHOP HORNE'S COMMENTARY, 



BOOK OF PSALMS. 



'I things must be fulfilled which were written in the Psalms concerning me- 

Luke xxiv. 44 . 

trill sing with the spirit, and I will sing with -the understanding also. 

1 Cor. xiv. 15. 

ey sing the song of Moses, and the song of the Lamb. Rev. xv. 3. 



A NEW EDITION* 



LONDON : 
PRINTED FOR C. & J. RIV1NGTON, 

Booksellers to the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 
no. 62, st. Paul's church-yard ; 
and no. 3, waterloo-place, pall-mall. 



1823. 




■Priii ted by R. Gilbert, St. John's Square, Londea. 



CONTENTS. 



Psalm Page 

II. For Easter Day 1 

VI. For Ash Wednesday 6 

VIII. For Ascension Day 10 

xv. For Ascension Day ...» 14 

xvi 17 

xviii 21 

XIX. For Christmas Day 38 

XXI. For Ascension Day 47 

XXII. For Good Friday 51 

xxiv. For Ascension Day 63 

xxxi. 66 

xxxn. For Ash Wednesday 72 

XXXV in. For Ash Wednesday 75 

XXXIX. For the Burial Service 81 

XL. For Good Friday 86 

xli. 93 

xliv 97 

XLV. For Christmas Day 103 

XLVii. For Ascension Day 110 

XLVin. For Whit-Sunday 114 

Li. To be used in the Commination on 

Ash Wednesday 119 

Liv. For Good Friday 126 

lvii. For Easter Day 128 

LXVK To be used as a Thanksgiving after 

a Storm 132 

LXVII. To be used at Evening Prayer; 

and at the Solemnization of Ma- 
trimony 136 



CONTENTS. 

Psalm Page 

lxviii. For Whit-Sunday . 139 

lxix 157 

lxxi. To be used at the Visitation of the 

Sick 170 

lxxii. Prophetical of the Messiah 176 

lxxviii , 183 

LXXXV. For Christmas Day ............ 204 

LXXXViii. For Good Friday 210 

LXXXix. For Christmas Day 216 

XC. For the Burial Service 231 

xci . 236 



xcv. To be used regularly at Morning 

Prayer .... 241 

XCVlli. To be used at Evening Prayer .. 246 
c. To be used at Morning Prayer . . 249 
Gil. For Ash Wednesday . 252 



civ. For Whit-Sunday 260 

evil. To be used as a Thanksgiving after 

a Storm 273 

cix 285 

ex. For Christmas Day 295 

cxi. For Easter Day 301 

cxm. For Easter Day 305 

cxiv. For Easter Day 307 

cxv 310 

CXVI. To be used at the Churching of 

Women 314 

cxv n. 319 

cxvin. For Easter Day 320 

cxxvn. To be used at the Churching of 

Women 329 

cxxvin. To be used at the Solemnization of 

Matrimony 334 

exxx. For Ash Wednesday 338 

cxxxn. For Christmas Day 341 

CXLin. For Ash Wenesday 348 

cxlv. For Whit-Sunday 353 



2 



k 

^ PREFATORY INTRODUCTION, 

3 



The Psalms are an epitome of the Bible, adapted 
to the purposes of devotion. They treat occasionally 
of the creation and formation of the world ; the 
dispensations of Providence, and the economy of 
grace; the transactions of the patriarchs ; the exodus 
of the children of Israel ; their journey through the 
wilderness, and settlement in Canaan ; their law, 
priesthood, and ritual ; the exploits of their great 
men, wrought through faith ; their sins and captivi- 
ties ; their repentances and restorations ; the suffer- 
ings and victories of David ; the peaceful and happy 
reign of Solomon; the advent of Messiah, with its 
effects and consequences ; his incarnation, birth, 
life, passion, death, resurrection, ascension, king- 
dora, and priesthood ; the effusion of the Spirit ; the 
conversion of the nations ; the rejection of the Jews ; 
the establishment, increase, and perpetuity of the 
Christian church ; the end of the world ; the gene- 
ral judgment ; the condemnation of the wicked, and 
the final triumph of the righteous with their Lord 
and King. These are the subjects here presented to 
wur meditations. We are instructed how to con- 
A 2 



iv PREFACE. 

ceive of them aright, and to express the different 
affections which, when so conceived of, they must 
excite in our minds. They are, for this purpose, 
adorned with the figures, and set off with all the 
graces, of poetry ; and poetry itself is designed yet 
farther to be recommended by the charms of music, 
thus consecrated to the service of God ; that so 
delight may prepare the way for improvement, and 
pleasure become the handmaid of wisdom, while 
every turbulent passion is calmed by sacred melody, 
and the evil spirit is still dispossessed by the harp of 
the son of Jesse. This little volume, like the para- 
dise of Eden, affords us in perfection, though in 
miniature, every thing that groweth elsewhere, 
" every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good 
for food :" and above all, what was there lost, but is 
here restored, the tree of life in the midst 
of the garden . That which we read, as matter 
of speculation, in the other Scriptures, is reduced 
to practice, when we recite it in the Psalms ; in 
those, repentance and faith are described, but in 
these, they are acted ; by a perusal of the former, 
we learn how others serve God, but, by using the 
latter, we serve him ourselves. " What is there 
necessary for man to know," says the pious and 
judicious Hooker, " which the Psalms are not able 
to teach? They are to beginners an easy and fami- 
liar introduction, a mighty augmentation of all virtue 
and knowledge in such as are entered before, a strong 
confirmation to the most perfect among others. He- 
roical magnanimity, exquisite justice, grave mode- 



PREFACE. Y 

ration, exact wisdom, repentance unfeigned, unwea- 
ried patience, the mysteries of God, the sufferings 
of Christ, the terrors of wrath, the comforts of 
grace, the works of Providence over this world, 
and the promised joys of that world which is to 
come; all good necessarily to be either known, or 
done, or had, this one celestial fountain yieldeth. 
Let there be any grief or disease incident unto the 
soul of man, any wound or sickness named, for which 
there is not, in this treasure-house, a present com- 
fortable remedy at all times ready to be found In 
the language of this divine book, therefore, the 
prayers and praises of the church have been offered 
up to the throne of grace, from age to age. And it 
appears to have been the manual of the Son of God, 
in the days of his flesh ; who, at the conclusion of 
his last supper, is generally supposed, and that upon 
good grounds, to have sung an hymn taken from it f ; 
who pronounced, on the cross, the beginning of the 
xxiid Psalm: " My God, my God, why hast thou 
forsaken me?" and expired with a part of the 
xxxist Psalm in his mouth : " Into thy hands I com- 
mend my spirit." Thus He, who had not the Spirit 
by measure, in whom were hidden all the treasures 
of wisdom and knowledge, and who spake as never 

* Hooker's Ecclesiastical Polity, b. v. sect. 37. 

f St. Matthew informs us, chap. xxvi. 30. that he and his 
apostles " sung an hymn and the hymn usually sung by the 
Jews upon that occasion, was, what they called the " great 
Hallel," consisting of the Psalms from the cxiiith to the 
cxviiith inclusive. 

A 3 



vi PREFACE. 

man spake, yet chose to conclude his life, to solace 
himself in his greatest agony, and at last to breathe 
out his soul, in the Psalmist's form of words rather 
than his own. No tongue of man or angel, as Dr. 
Hammond justly observes, can convey an higher 
idea of any book, and of their felicity who use it 
aright. 

It may not be amiss, therefore, to run through the 
Psalter, and point out some of the more remarkable 
passages, which are cited from thence by our Lord 
and his apostles, and applied to matters evangelical. 

No sooner have we opened the book, than the 
second Psalm presenteth itself, to all appearance, as 
an inauguration hymn, composed by David, the 
anointed of Jehovah, when by him crowned with 
victory, and placed triumphant on the sacred hill 
of Sion. But let us turn to Acts iv. 25. and there 
we find the apostles, with one voice, declaring the 
Psalm to be descriptive of the exaltation of Jesus 
Christ, and of the opposition raised against his 
Gospel, both by Jew and Gentile. 

In the eighth Psalm we imagine the writer to be 
setting forth the pre-eminence of man in general, 
above the rest of the creation ; but by Heb. ii. 6*. 
we are informed, that the supremacy conferred on 
the second Adam, the man Christ Jesus, over 
all things in heaven and earth, is the subject there 
treated of. 

St. Peter stands up, Acts ii. 25. and preaches the 
resurrection of Jesus from the latter part of the 



PREFACE. 



\ii 



sixteenth Psalm ; and, lo ! three thousand souls are 
converted by the sermon. 

Of the eighteenth Psalm we are told, in the course 
of the sacred history, 2 Sam. xxii. that " David 
spake before the Lord the words of that song, in 
the day that the Lord delivered him out of the hand 
of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul." 
Yet in Rom. xv. 9. the 49th verse of that Psalm is 
adduced as a proof, that " the Gentiles should glo- 
rify God for his mercy in Jesus Christ, as it is writ- 
ten, For this cause I will confess to thee among the 
Gentiles, and sing unto thy name." 

In the nineteenth Psalm, David seems to be 
speaking of the material heavens, and their opera- 
tions only, when he says, " their sound is gone out 
into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of 
the world." But St. Paul, Rom. x. 38. quotes the 
passage to show, that the Gospel had been univer- 
sally published by the apostles. 

The twenty-second Psalm Christ appropriated to 
himself, by beginning it in the midst of his sufferings 
on the cross ; " My God, my God," &c. Three 
other verses of it are in the New Testament, applied 
to him ; and the words of the 8th verse were actually 
used by the chief priests, when they reviled him ; 
" He trusted in God," &c. Matt, xxvii. 43. 

"When David saith, in the fortieth Psalm, " Sa- 
crifice and offering thou didst not desire— Lo, I 
come to do thy will we might suppose him only to 
declare in his own person, that obedience is better 
than sacrifice. But from Heb. x. 5. we learn, that 
a4 



Vlll PREFACE. 
Messiah, in that place, speaketh of his advent in the 
flesh, to abolish the legal sacrifices, and to do away 
sin, by the oblation of himself, once for all. 

That tender and pathetic complaint, in the forty- 
first Psalm, " Mine own familiar friend, in whom 
I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lift up 
his heel against me," undoubtedly might be, and 
probably was originally uttered by David upon the 
revolt of his old friend and counsellor, Ahithophel, 
to the party of his rebellious son, Absalom. But we 
are certain, from John xiii. 18. that this Scripture 
was fulfilled, when Christ was betrayed by his 
apostate disciple — " I speak not of you all ; I know 
whom I have chosen ; but that the Scriptures may 
be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with me hath lift 
up his heel against me." 

The forty-fourth Psalm we must suppose to have 
been written on occasion of a persecution under 
which the church at that time laboured ; but a verse 
of it is cited, Rom. viii. 36. as expressive of what 
Christians were to suffer, on their blessed Master's 
account ; " as it is written, For thy sake are we 
killed a4l the day long ; we are accounted as sheep 
appointed to be slain." 

A quotation from the forty-fifth Psalm, in Heb.i. 8. 
certifies us, that the whole is addressed to the Son 
of God, and therefore celebrates his spiritual union 
with the church, and the happy fruits of it. 

The sixty-eighth Psalm, though apparently con- 
versant about Israelitish victories, the translation of 
the ark to Sion, and the services of the tabernacle. 



PREFACE. IX 

yet does, under those figures, treat of Christ's re- 
surrection, his going up on high, leading captivity 
captive, pouring out the gifts of the Spirit, erecting 
his church in the world, and enlarging it by the 
accession of the nations to the faith : as will be evi- 
dent to any one, who considers the force and con- 
sequence of the apostle's citation from it, Ephes. iv. 
7, 8. ** Unto every one of us is given grace, ac- 
cording to the measure of the gift of Christ. Where- 
fore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led 
captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men." 

The sixty-ninth Psalm is five times referred to in 
the Gospels, as being uttered by the Prophet, in the 
person of the Messiah. The imprecations, or rather 
predictions, at the latter end of it, are applied, Rom. 
xi. 9, 10. to the Jews; and to Judas, Acts i. 20. 
where the hundred and ninth Psalm is also cited, as 
prophetical of the sore judgments which should 
befall that arch-traitor, and the wretched nation of 
which he was an epitome. 

St. Matthew informing us, chap. xiii. 34. that 
Jesus spake to the multitude in parables, gives it as 
one reason why he did so, " that it might be fulfilled 
which was spoken by the Prophet," Psalmlxxviii.2. 
" I will open my mouth in a parable : I will utter 
things which have been kept secret from the foun- 
dation of the world." 

The ninety-first Psalm was applied by the temp- 
ter, to Messiah ; nor did our Lord object to the ap- 
plication, but only to the false inference, which his 
adversary suggested from it. Matt. iv. 6, 7. 
A 5 



X PREFACE. 

The ninety-fifth Psalm is explained at large in 
Heb. iii. and iv. as relative to the state and trial of 
Christians in the world, and to their attainment of 
the heavenly rest. 

The hundred and tenth Psalm is cited by Christ 
himself, Matt. xxii. 44. as treating of his exaltation, 
kingdom, and priesthood. 

The hundred and seventeenth Psalm, consisting 
only of t\*o verses, is employed Rom. xv. 11. to 
prove, that the Gentiles were one day to praise God 
for the mercies of redemption. 

The 22d verse of the hundred and eighteenth 
Psalm, " The stone which the builders refused," 
&c. is quoted six different times, as spoken of our 
Saviour. 

And, lastly, " the fruit of David's body," which 
God is said, in the hundred and thirty-second Psalm, 
to have promised that he would place upon his 
" throne," is asserted, Acts ii. 30., to be Jesus 
Christ. 

It is very justly observed by Dr. Allix, that "* al- 
though the sense of near fifty Psalms be fixed and 
settled by divine authors, yet Christ and his apostles 
did not undertake to quote all the Psalms they could 
quote, but only to give a key to their hearers, by 
which they might apply to the same subjects the 
Psalms of the same composure and expression 
The citations in the New Testament were made 
incidentally, and as occasion was given. But can 



* Preface to his Book of Psalms, p. 9. 



PREFACE. Xi 

we imagine, that the church was not farther in- 
structed in the manner of applying the Psalms to her 
Redeemer and to herself? Did she stop at the 
applications thus incidentally and occasionally made 
by the inspired writers ? Did she stop, because 
they had directed her how to proceed ? We know 
she did not. In this channel flows the stream of the 
earliest Christian expositors. Nor did they depart, 
in this point from the doctrine held in the church 
of the ancient Jews, who were always taught to 
regard Messiah as the capital object of the Psal- 
ter. And though, when the time came, that people 
would not receive Jesus of Nazareth as their Mes- 
siah, it does not appear that they ever objected to 
the propriety of the citations made by our Lord and 
his apostles, or thought such passages applicable to 
David only and his concerns. Nay, the most 
learned of their Rabbis, who have written since the 
commencement of the Christian aera, still agree with, 
us in referring many of the Psalms to Messiah and 
his kingdom ; differing only about the person of the 
one, and the nature of the other. 

It is obvious, that every part of the Psalter, when 
explicated according to this Scriptural and primitive 
method, is rendered universally " profitable for doc- 
trine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in 
righteousness ;" and the propriety immediately ap- 
pears of its having always been used in the devo- 
tional way, both by the Jewish and the Christian; 
church. With regard to the Jews, bishop Chandler 
very pertinently remarks, that ** they must have un- 
A 6 



XU PREFACE. 

derstood David, their prince, to have been a figure 
of Messiah. They would not otherwise have made 
his Psalms part of their daily worship, nor would 
David have delivered them to the church to be so 
employed, were it not to instruct and support them 
in the knowledge and belief of this fundamental ar- 
ticle. Was the Messias not concerned in the Psalrns, 
it were absurd to celebrate, twice a day, in their 
public devotions, the events of one man's life, who 
was deceased so long ago as to have no relation now 
to the Jews, and the circumstances of their affairs ; 
or to transcribe whole passages from them, into 
their prayers for the coming of the Messiah 
Upon the same principle, it is easily seen, that the 
objections which may seem to lie against the use of 
Jewish services in Christian congregations, cease at 
once. Thus, it may be said, Are we concerned with 
the affairs of David and of Israel? Have we any thing 
to do with the ark and the temple? They are no more. 
Are we to go up to Jerusalem, and to worship on 
Sion ? They are desolated and trodden under foot by 
the Turks. Are we to sacrifice young bullocks, ac- 
cording to the law ? The law is abolished, never to 
be observed again. Do we pray for victory over 
Moab, Edom, and Philistia ; or for deliverance from 
Babylon 1 There are no such nations, no such places 
in the world. What then do we mean, when, taking 
such expressions into our mouths, we utter them in 
our own persons, as parts of our devotions, before 



* Defence of Christianity, First Part, p. 241. 



PREFACE. xiii 

God 1 Assuredly we must mean a spiritual J erusalem 
and Sion ; a spiritual ark and temple ; a spiritual 
law ; spiritual sacrifices ; and spiritual victories over 
spiritual enemies ; all described under the old names, 
which are still retained, though " old things are 
passed away, and all things are become new */' By 
substituting Messiah for David, the Gospel for the 
law, the church Christian for that of Israel, and the 
enemies of the one for those of the other, the 
Psalms are made our own. Nay, they are, with 
more fulness and propriety, applied now to the sub- 
stance, than they were of old to the shadow of 
good things then to come f." And, therefore, ever 
since the commencement of the Christian sera, the 
church hath chosen to celebrate the Gospel mysteries 
in the words of these ancient hymns, rather than to 
compose for that purpose new ones of her own. For, 
let it not pass unobserved that, when, upon the first 
publication of the Gospel, the apostles had occasion 
to utter their transports of joy, on their being 
counted worthy to suffer for the name of their dear 

* 2 Cor. v. 17. Ergo arrige aures, Christiane Lector, et 
ubi talia in Davide legeris, tu mihi fac cogites, non Arcam, 
fragile lignum, aut Tabernaculum contectum pellibus ; non 
urbem lapidibus compositam ; non Templum divinae Majestati 
angustum : sed Christi et Ecclesiae Sacramenta, sed vivos 
lapides, Christo angulari lapidi coaptates ; sed ipsam Eucha- 
ristiam prsesentis Dei testem ; denique coeleste regnum et 
apternam felicitalem. Bossuet, Dissertat. de Psal. cap. i. ad 
fin. 

t Heb. x. 1. 



PREFACE. 



Lord and Master, which was then opposed by Jew 
and Gentile, they brake forth into an application of 
the second Psalm to the transactions then before their 
eyes: see Acts iv. 25. The primitive Christians 
constantly followed this method, in their devotions ; 
and particularly when, delivered out of the hands of 
persecuting tyrants by the victories of Constantine, 
they praised God for his goodness, and the glorious 
success and establishment of Christ's religion, no 
words were found so exquisitely adapted to the pur" 
pose, as those of David, in the xcvith, xcviiith, and 
other Psalms — " Sing unto the Lord a new song : 
sing unto the Lord, all the earth. Sing unto the 
Lord, and praise his name : be telling of his salva- 
tion from day to day. Declare his honour unto the 
heathen, his worship unto all people/' &c. &c. &c. 
In these, and the like Psalms, WE continue to praise 
God, for all his spiritual mercies in Christ, to this 
day. 

The Psalms, thus applied, have advantages which 
no fresh compositions, however finely executed, can 
possibly have ; since, besides their incomparable fit- 
ness to express our sentiments, they are, at the same 
time, memorials of, and appeals to, former mercies 
and deliverances ; they are acknowledgments of pro- 
phecies accomplished ; they point out the connexion 
between the old and new dispensations, thereby 
teaching us to admire and adore the wisdom of God 
displayed in both, and furnishing, while we read or 
sing them, an inexhaustible variety of the noblest 
matter that can engage the contemplations of man. 



PREFACE. 



XV 



The Israelitish polity, and the law of Moses, were 
purposely framed after the example and shadow of 
things spiritual and heavenly; and the events which 
happened to the ancient people of God, were de- 
signed to shadow out parallel occurrences, which 
should afterwards take place, in the accomplishment 
of man's redemption, and the rise and progress of the 
Christian church*. For this reason, the Psalms 

* " The Jews only, as a nation, acknowledged the one su- 
preme God, under the name of Jehovah ; they must be there- 
fore his peculiar people. There is nothing capricious in this : 
they are correlates, and of necessity answer reciprocally to 
each other. Hence that singular intercourse between God 
and them. Hence, among other instances of his favour, his 
communication of himself to them by supernatural ways of 
Oracle, Inspiration, &c. When the acknowledgment of the 
one God branched itself, from this Jewish stock, over the face 
of the earth, and by that means he was become the God of 
all mankind, they must all, for the same reason, become his 
people. As God is ever the same, and his doings uniform, 
his conduct towards mankind must exactly be proportioned to 
his conduct towards the Jewish nation. Let us, therefore, 
place God in common over them both ; and there will be — 
on one side, the Jewish nation ; and on the other, mankind ; 
on one side, Canaan, and a national prosperity ; on the other, 
heaven and human happiness : on one side, a redemption from 
Egyptian servitude, and national evils ; on the other, a re- 
demption of the whole human race from absolute evil : on 
one side, national crimes atoned by national ceremonies, sa- 
crifices, priests; on the other, sins expiated by the one uni- 
versal sacrifice of Jesus Christ: on one side, national and 
temporary saviours, kings, prophets, Sec. ; on the other, all 
this universal, and eternal : on one side, the Law, and every 
branch of it, adapted to a favourite nation; on the other, the 



xvi 



PREFACE. 



composed for the use of Israel, and Israel's monarch, 
and by them accordingly used at the time, do admit 
of an application to us, who are now " the Israel of 
God V and to our Redeemer, who is the " King of 
this Israeli." 

" The establishment of David upon his throne, 
notwithstanding the opposition made to it by his 
enemies, is the subject of the second Psalm. David 
sustains it in a twofold character, literal and allego- 
rical. If we read over the Psalm, 6rst with an eye 
to the literal David, the meaning is obvious, and put 
out of all dispute by the sacred history. There is 
indeed an uncommon glow in the expression, and 
sublimity in the figures, and the diction is now and 

everlasting Gospel, suited to all mankind. It is impossible, 
therefore, that God can say any thing to David, under the 
quality of king of this chosen nation, which, he does not speak 
at the same time, to Jesus Christ, as King of all the elect, 
and that in a truer and nobler sense. To each of them he 
speaks in a sense adapted to the nature of their respective 
kingdoms. Nor is the latter a bare accommodation of words' 
but the first and highest meaning of them, and which only 
absolutely speaking, can be the true sense of God ; the other 
being this sense, confined to a particular circumstance ; in 
other words, an absolute truth, made history and matter of 
fact." 

* Gal. vi. 16. 

f That expressions and descriptions in human writings are 
often so framed as to admit of a double sense, without any im- 
propriety or confusion, is shewn by the very learned Mr. 
Merrick, in his excellent observations on Dr. Benson's 
Essay concerning the Unity of Sense, &c. subjoined to his 
Annotations on the Psalms, 



PREFACE. XVll 

then exaggerated, as it were on purpose to intimate, 
and lead us to the contemplation of higher and more 
important matters concealed within. In compliance 
with this admonition, if we take another survey of 
the Psalm, as relative to the person and concerns of 
the spiritual David, a nobler series of events in- 
stantly arises to view, and the meaning becomes 
more evident, as well as exalted. The colouring, 
which may perhaps seem too bold and glaring for 
the king of Israel, will no longer appear so, when 
laid upon his great Antitype. After we have thus 
attentively considered the subjects apart, let us look 
at them together, and we shall behold the full beauty 
and majesty of this most charming poem. We shall 
perceive the two senses, very distinct from each 
other, yet conspiring in perfect harmony, and bear- 
ing a wonderful resemblance in every feature and 
lineament, while the analogy between them is so 
exactly preserved, that either may pass for the ori- 
ginal from whence the other was copied. New 
light is continually cast upon the phraseology, fresh 
weight and dignity are added to the sentiment, till 
gradually ascending from things below to things 
above, from human affairs to those which are divine, 
they bear the great important theme upwards with 
them, and at length place it in the height and bright- 
ness of heaven." 

Upon this plan it is, that many of the Psalms are 
interpreted in the following sheets. 

In such of them as were written by David, and 
treat of his affairs, that extraordinary person is con- 



xviii PREFACE. 

sidered as an illustrious representative of Messiah, 
who is more than once foretold under the name of 
David, and to whom are applied, in the New Testa- 
ment, Psalms which do undoubtedly, in the letter of 
them, relate to David, and were composed on occa- 
sion of particular occurrences which befell him ; a 
circumstance in theology, to be accounted for upon 
no other principle. 

When, therefore, he describeth himself as one 
hated and persecuted without a cause ; as one ac- 
cused of crimes which he never committed, and suf- 
fering for sins the very thoughts of which he ab- 
horred ; as one whose life was embittered by afflic- 
tion, and his soul overwhelmed with sorrows ; yet, 
withal, as one whom no troubles could induce to re- 
nounce his trust and confidence in the promises of 
God concerning him ; when he repeated his resolu- 
tions of adhering to the divine law, setting forth its 
various excellencies, and the comforts which it 
afforded him in the days of adversity ; when he 
complaineth of that implacable malice, and unre- 
lenting fury, with which he was pursued by Saul 
and his attendants, by Doeg the Edomite, by re- 
bellious Absalom, traitorous Ahithophel, &c. and 
when, contrary to all appearances, he predicteth 
their destruction, with his own final exaltation ; in 
expounding the Psalms of this cast and complexion, 
it hath been my endeavour to direct the reader's 
thoughts to parallel circumstances, which present 
themselves in the history of the true David ; his 
sorrows and sufferings ; his resignation under them 



PREFACE. xix 

all; his obedience to the will of his Father; the 
temper and behaviour of his betrayers and mur- 
derers ; the prophecies of judgments to be inflicted 
upon them, and of glory to be conferred upon him. 
As the Psalter was the liturgy of the Jewish church, 
of which our Lord was a member, and to which he 
therefore entirely conformed during his abode and 
humiliation upon earth, he might pour forth his com- 
plaints, and " offer up his prayers and supplications, 
with strong crying and tears in the very words 
which his progenitor David had before used under 
his own troubles, but which were given by inspira- 
tion, with a view to the case of that blessed Person 
whom, in those troubles, he had the honour to pre- 
figure. 

Other Psalms there are, which disclose far tfi?* 
ferent scenes. In them the sorrows of David are at 
an end, and the day of his deliverance hath already 
dawned. The heavens are opened, and Jehovah ap- 
peareth in the cause of his afflicted servant. He 
descendeth from above, encompassed with clouds and 
darkness, preceded by fire and hail, proclaimed by 
thunder and earthquake, and attended by lightnings 
and whirlwinds. The mountains smoke, and the 
rocks melt before him ; the foundations of the globe 
are uncovered, and the deep from beneath is moved 
at his presence. The adversary is dismayed and 
confounded ; opposition, in the height of its career, 
feels the blast through all its powers, and instantly 



* Hob. v. 7. 



XX PREFACE. 

withers away. The anointed of God, according to 
his original designation, is at length elevated to the 
throne ; his sceptre is extended over the nations ; 
the temple is planned by him, and erected by his 
son ; the services of religion are appointed in perfect 
order and beauty; Jerusalem becometh a praise in 
all the earth : and the kingdom is established in 
honour, peace, and felicity. If in Psalms of the 
former kind the holy Jesus might behold those per- 
secutions and sufferings, under which he was to be 
humbled, and to mourn, during his pilgrimage here 
below ; in Psalms of this latter sort, he might 
strengthen and console himself, as a man " touched 
with the feeling of our infirmities, and tempted in 
all points like as we are," by viewing " the glory 
that should follow;" by contemplating the mani- 
festation of the Father in favour of his beloved Son ; 
his own joyful resurrection, triumphant ascension, 
and magnificent inauguration ; the conversion of the 
world, and the establishment of the church ; events, 
which were foreshadowed by those above mentioned : 
and to which, when the strongest expressions made 
use of by the divine Psalmist are applied,, they will 
no longer appear hyperbolical ; especially if we bear 
in mind, that these prophetic descriptions wait for 
their full and final accomplishment at that day, when 
the mystical " body of Christ," having " filled up 
that which is behind of his afflictions *," shall also, 
amidst the pangs and convulsions of departing nature, 



* Colos. i. 24. 



PREFACE. Sxi 

f 

arise from the dead, and ascend into heaven ; 
where all the members of that body, which have 
been afflicted and have mourned with their Lord and 
Master, shall be comforted and glorified together 
with him *. 

In some of the Psalms, David appears as one suf- 
fering- for his sins. When man speaks of sin, he 
speaks of what is his own; and, therefore, every 
Psalm where sin is confessed to be the cause of 
sorrow, belongs originally and properly to us, as 
fallen sons of Adam, like David and all other men. 
This is the case of the fifty-first, and the rest of 
those which are styled Penitential Psalms, and have 
always been used in the church as such. Some- 

* Neqne praetermittendum illud Augustini passim, &c. 
Neither must we omit to notice the remark which Augustine 
has frequently made ; that then the Psalms appear to us 
most sweet, and arrayed in the most divine light, when we 
understand and perceive in them the Head and the members, 
Christ and his church, either openly declared, or figuratively 
pointed out. — Wherefore let us with renewed attention lift 
up our minds ; and when in them we read or hear of David 
and Solomon ; of David's enemies, Saul, Ahithophel, and the 
rest; of war and peace ; of bondage and liberty, and similar 
circumstances and expressions ; then let us imprint upon 
our minds that by them are represented Christ and his 
church harassed and proved by labours and perils, wander- 
ing as a pilgrim through evil report and good report ; that 
by them are represented the persecutors of the saints, not 
those only who are visible, but even those who are invisible, 
even the powers of the air ; our constant warfare in this pre- 
sent life, and the everlasting peace and happiness that will 
follow us in the world to come. 

3 



XXli PREFACE. 

times, indeed, it happens, that we meet with heavy 
complaints of the number and burden of sins, in 
Psalms from which passages are quoted in the New 
Testament as uttered by our Redeemer, and in which 
there seems to be no change of person, from begin- 
ning to end. We are assured, for instance, by the 
apostle, Heb. x. 5. that the sixth, seventh, and eighth 
verses of the fortieth Psalm, " Sacrifice and offering 
thou didst not desire," &c. are spoken by Messiah 
coming to abolish the legal sacrifices, by the oblation 
of himself once for all. The same person, to ap- 
pearance, continues speaking, and, only three verses 
after, complains in the following terms : " Innume- 
rable evils have compassed me about, mine iniquities 
have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to 
look up ; they are more than the hairs of my head, 
therefore my heart faileth me." So again, there are 
no less than five quotations from different parts of the 
sixty-ninth Psalm, all concurring to inform us that 
Christ is the speaker through that whole Psalm. Yet 
the fifth verse of it runs thus : " O God, thou knowest 
my foolishness, and my OWN guiltiness is not hid 
from thee." The solution of this difficulty given, and 
continually insisted on, in the writings of the Fathers 
is this ; that Christ, in the day of his passion, standing 
charged with the sin and guilt of his people, speaks 
of such their sin and guilt as if they were his own, 
appropriating to himself those debts for which, in 
the capacity of a surety, he had made himself re- 
sponsible. The Lamb which, under the law, was 
offered for sin, took the name DW, " guilt," because 



PREFACE. Xxiii 

the guilt contracted by the offerer was transferred to 
that innocent creature, and typically expiated by its 
blood *. Was not this exactly the case, in truth and 
reality, with the Lamb of God ? He did no sin, 
neither was guile found in his mouth ; but he bare 
our sins in his own body on the tree f. He was made 
sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made 
the righteousness of God in him J. Christ and 
the church compose one mystical person, of which 
he is the head, and the church the body ; and as the 
body speaks by the head, and the head for the body, 
he speaks of her sin, and she of his righteousness $ 
which consideration is at the same time a key to any 
claims of righteousness made in the Psalms by her, 
and to any confession of sin made by him. This 
seems to be a satisfactory account of the matter. 
Such, at least, appears to have been the idea gene- 
rally adopted and received, in the first ages of th& 
Christian church : a circumstance which, it is pre- 
sumed, will be deemed a sufficient apology for the 
author, if, in the explication ef such passages, he 
hath ventured to proceed accordingly. Nay, and 
even in reciting the Penitential Psalms, when the 
unhappy sufferer is ready to sink down under that 
weight of woe which sin hath laid upon him, if he 
will extend his thoughts, as he is sometimes directed 
to do, to that holy and most innocent Person, who 
felt and sorrowed so much for us all, he will thereby 
furnish himself with the best argument for patience, 

* See Levit. v. 6. f 1 Pet. ii. 22. X 2 Cor. v. 21. 
9 



Xxiv PREFACE, 

and an inexhaustible source of comfort. Nor can it, 
indeed, well be imagined, that our blessed Lord, as 
a member of the Jewish church, and an attendant 
on the service of the synagogue, though conscious 
to himself of no sin, did not frequently join with 
his " brethren according to the flesh, " in the repe- 
tition of the Penitential, as well as the other Psalms, 
on the days of humiliation and expiation, when the 
use of them might be prescribed. If, from his 
circumcision to his crucifixion, " he bare our sins 
in his own body why should it be thought strange, 
that he should confess them, on our behalf, with his 
own mouth ? 

The offence taken at the supposed uncharitable 
and vindictive spirit of the imprecations, which 
occur in some of the Psalms, ceases immediately, if 
we change the imperative for the future, and read, 

not " LET THEM BE CONFOUNDED," &C but, "THEY 

shall be confounded/' &c. of which the Hebrew 
is equally capable. Such passages will then have no 
more difficulty in them, than the other frequent pre- 
dictions of divine vengeance in the writings of the 
prophets, or denunciations of it in the Gospels, in- 
tended to warn, to alarm, and to lead sinners to re- 
pentance, that they may fly from the wrath to come. 
This is Dr. Hammond's observation ; who very pro- 
perly remarks, at the same time, that in many places 
of this sort, as particularly in Psalm cix. (and the 
same may be said of Psalm lxix.) it is reasonable to 
resolve, that Christ himself speak eth in the prophet ; 
as being the person there principally concerned, and 



PREFACE. XXV 

the completion most signal in many circumstances 
there mentioned ; the succession especially of Mat- 
thias to the apostleship of Judas. It is true, that in 
the citation made by St. Peter from Psalm cix. in 
Acts i. 20. as also that made by St. Paul from Ps. 
Ixix. in Rom. xi. 9. the imperative form is preserved : 
" luET his habitation be void,"&c. " let their table 
be made a snare/' &c. But it may be considered, 
that the apostles generally cited from the Greek of 
the LXX version ; and took it as they found it, 
making no alteration, when the passage, as it there 
stood, was sufficient to prove the main point which it 
was adduced to prove. If the imprecatory form be 
still contended for, all that can be meant by it, whe- 
ther uttered by the Prophet, by Messiah, or by our- 
selves, must be a solemn ratification of the just 
judgments of the Almighty against his impenitent 
enemies, like what we find ascribed to the blessed 
spirits in heaven, when such judgments were exe- 
cuted ; Rev. xi. 17, 18. xvi. 5, 6, 7. : see Merrick's 
Annotations on Ps. cix. and Witsii Miscellan. Sacr. 
lib. i. cap. xviii. sect. 24. But, by the future ren- 
dering the verbs, every possible objection is pre- 
cluded at once. This method has therefore been 
adopted in the ensuing Commentary. 

Qf the Psalms which relate to Israel, some are em- 
ployed in celebrating the mercies vouchsafed them, 
from their going forth out of Egypt, to their complete 
settlement in Canaan. These were the constant 
standing subjects of praise and thanksgiving in the 
Israelitish church. But we are taught by the writers 
a 



XXvi PREFACE. 

of the New Testament, to consider this part of their 
history as one continued figure, or allegory. We 
are told that there is another spiritual Israel of God : 
other children of Abraham, and heirs of the pro- 
mise ; another circumcision ; another Egypt, from 
the bondage of which they are redeemed ; another 
wilderness through which they journey ; other dan- 
gers and difficulties which there await them ; other 
bread from heaven for their support ; and another 
rock to supply them with living water; other enemies 
to overcome ; another land of Canaan, and another 
Jerusalem, which they are to obtain, and to possess 
for ever. In the same light are to be viewed the 
various provocations and punishments, captivities 
and restorations of old Israel afterward s, concerning 
which it is likewise true, that they " happened unto 
them for ensamples," types # , or figures, " and were 
written for our admonition f." Care has therefore 
been taken to open and apply, for that salutary pur- 
pose, the Psalms which treat of the above-mentioned 
particulars. 

What is said in the Psalms occasionally of the law 
and its ceremonies, sacrifices, ablutions, and purifi- 
cations ; of the tabernacle and temple, with the ser- 
vices therein performed; and of the Aaronical priest- 
hood ; all this Christians transfer to the new law ; to 
the oblation of Christ; to justification by his blood, 
and sanctification by his Spirit ; to the true taber- 
nacle, or temple not made with hands ; and to what 

* Gr.TWoi. t lCor. x. 11, 



PREFACE. 



xxvii 



was therein done for the salvation of the world, by 
Hiin who was, in one respect, a Sacrifice ; in another, 
a Temple ; and in a third, an High Priest for ever, 
after the order of Melchisedek. That such was the 
intention of these legal figures, is declared at large 
in the Epistle to the Hebrews : and they are of great 
assistance to us now, in forming our ideas of the 
realities to which they correspond. " Under the 
Jewish economy," says the excellent Mr. Pascal, 
11 truth appeared but in a figure : in heaven it is 
open, and without a veil; in the church militant 
it is so veiled, as to be yet discerned by its cor- 
respondence to the figure. As the figure was first 
built upon the truth, so the truth is now distinguish- 
able by the figure." The variety of strong expres- 
sions used by David in the nineteenth and the hun- 
dred and nineteenth Psalms, to extol the enlivening, 
saving, healing, comforting efficacy of a law, which, 
in the letter of it, whether ceremonial or moral, 
without pardon and grace, could minister no- 
thing but condemnation, do sufficiently prove, that 
David understood the spirit of it, which was the 
Gospel itself*. And if any, who recited those 

* Haec inter, veri etspirituales, Judaei,&c. " In the mean 
while, they who were truly and spiritually Jews, that is, who 
were disciples of Christ even before his coming, raised their 
thoughts above the outward figure ; and, while they reve- 
renced the types of heavenly things, beheld, with the eye of 
faith, new Jerusalem, the new temple, the new ark of the co- 
venant." Bossuet, Dissertat. in Psal. cap. 1. — Lex. juxtu 
Spiritual accepta, &c. (i The Law, spiritually received and 
a 2 



xxviii 



PREFACE. 



Psalms, had not the same idea, it was not the fault 
of the Law or of the Psalms, of Moses, or of David, 
or of him who inspired both, but it was their own ; 
as it is that of the Jews, at this hour, though their 
prophecies have now been fulfilled, and their types 
realized. " He that takes his estimate of the Jewish 
religion from the grossness of the Jewish multitude," 
as the last cited author observes, cannot fail of 
making a very wrong judgment. It is to be sought 
for in the sacred writings of the prophets, who have 
given us sufficient assurance, that they understood 
the law not according to the letter. Our religion, 

understood, was the Gospel itself tying concealed under the 
old figures, and shadowed by the vail of ceremonies : unfold- 
ed, in some degree, and as far as circumstances would admit, 
(particularly in the book of Deuteronomy) even by Moses 
himself: pointed out more clearly by succeeding prophets, 
as to Divine Wisdom seemed good, till it was at. length re- 
vealed in the fullest and most brilliant light by Christ and his 
Apostles." Bulli Opera, p. 614. — If the Jews, as our Saviour 
tells them, (i thought they had eternal life in their Scrip- 
tures/' they must needs have understood them in a spiritual 
sense : and I know not what other spiritual sense, that should 
lead them to the expectation of eternal life, they could put 
on their Scriptures, but that prophetical or typical sense, 
which respected the Messiah. Jesus expressly asserts, at 
the same time, that their " Scriptures testified of Him." 
How generally they did so, he explained at large, in that re- 
markable conversation with two of his disciples after his 
resurrection ; when, " beginning at Moses, and all the pro- 
phets, he expounded unto them in all the Scriptures, the 
things concerning himself." Hurd's Introd. to the Study of 
the Prophecies, Serm. ii. 



pHeface* xxix 

in like manner, is true and divine in the Gospels, 
and in the preaching of the apostles ; but it appears 
utterly disfigured in those who maim or corrupt it." 

Besides the figures supplied by the history of 
Israel, and by the law, there is another set of images 
often employed in the Psalms, to describe the bless- 
ings of redemption. These are borrowed from the 
natural world, the manner of its original production 
and the operations continually carried qn in it. The 
visible works of God are formed to lead us, under 
the direction of his word, to a knowledge of those 
which are invisible ; they give us ideas, by analogy, 
of a new creation rising gradually, like the old one, 
out of darkness and deformity, until at length it ar- 
rives at the perfection of glory and beauty ; so that 
while we praise the Lord for all the wonders of his 
power, wisdom, and love, displayed in a system 
which is to wax old and perish, we may therein con* 
template, as in a glass, those new heavens, and that 
new earth, of whose duration there shall be no end. 
The sun, that fountain of life, and heart of the world, 
that bright leader of the armies of heaven, enthroned 
in glorious majesty ; the moon shining with a lustre 
borrowed from his beams ; the stars glittering by 
night in the clear firmament ; the air giving breath 
to all things that live and move ; the interchanges of 
light and darkness ; the course of the year, and the 
sweet vicissitudes of seasons ; the rain and the dew 
descending from above, and the fruitfulness of the 
earth caused by them ; the bow bent by the hands of 
the Most High, which compasseth the heaven about 
a 3 



XXX 



PREFACE. 



with a glorious circle ; the awful voice of thunder, 
and the piercing power of lightning ; the instincts of 
animals, and the qualities of vegetables and mine^ 
rals ; the great and wide sea, with its unnumbered 
inhabitants ; all these are ready to instruct us in the 
mysteries of faith, and the duties of morality : — 

They speak their Maker as they can, 
But want and ask the tongue of man. 

Parnell. 

The advantages of Messiah's reign are repre- 
sented, in some of the Psalms, under images of this 
kind. We behold a renovation of all things, and 
the world, as it were, new created, breaks forth into 
singing. The earth is crowned with sudden ver- 
dure and fertility ; the field is joyful, and all that is 
in it ; the trees of the wood rejoice before the Lord ; 
the floods clap their hands in concert, and ocean fills 
up the mighty chorus, to celebrate the advent of the 
Great King. 

Similar to these, are the representations of spiri- 
tual mercies by temporal deliverances from sickness, 
prison, danger of perishing . in storms at sea, and 
from the sundry kiuds of calamity and death, to 
which the body of man is subject; as also by scenes 
of domestic felicity, and by the flourishing state of 
Well-ordered communities, especially that of Israel 
in Canaan, which, while the benediction of Jehovah 
rested upon it, was a picture of heaven itself. 

Let us stop for a moment, to contemplate the true 
character of these sacred hymns. 



PREFACE. 



xxxi 



Greatness confers no exemption from the cares 
and sorrows of life. Its share of them frequently 
bears a melancholy proportion to its exaltation. 
This the Israelitish monarch experienced. He 
sought in piety that peace which he could not find 
in empire, and alleviated the disquietudes of state 
with the exercises of devotion. 

His invaluable Psalms convey those comforts to 
others which they afforded to himself. Composed 
upon particular occasions, yet designed for general 
use ; delivered out as services for Israelites under 
the law, yet no less adapted to the circumstances of 
Christians under the Gospel ; they present religion 
to us in the most engaging dress; communicating 
truths which philosophy could never investigate, in 
a style which poetry can never equal ; while history 
is made the vehicle of prophecy, and creation lends 
all its charms to paint the glories of redemption. 
Calculated alike to profit and to please, they inform 
the understanding, elevate the affections, and enter- 
tain the imagination. Indited, under the influence 
of Him to whom all hearts are known, and all events 
foreknown, they suit mankind in all situations, grate- 
ful as the manna which descended from above, and 
conforming itself to every palate. The fairest pro- 
ductions of human wit, after a few perusals, like ga- 
thered flowers, wither in our hands, and lose their 
fragrancy ; but these unfading plants of paradise be- 
come, as we are acustomed to them, still more and 
more beautiful ; their bloom appears to be daily 
heightened ; fresh odours are emitted, and new sweets 



xxxii 



PREFACE. 



extracted from them. He who hath once tasted 
their excellencies, will desire to taste them yet 
again ; and he who tastes them oftenest will relish 
them best. 

And now, could the author flatter himself, that 
any one would take half the pleasure in reading the 
following exposition, which he hath taken in writing 
it, he would not fear the loss of his labour. The em- 
ployment detached him from the bustle and hurry 
of life, the din of politics, and the noise of folly ; 
vanity and vexation flew away for a season, care and 
disquietude came not near his dwelling. He arose, 
fresh as the morning, to his task ; the silence of the 
night invited him to pursue it: and he can truly say 
that food and rest were not preferred before it. 
Every Psalm improved infinitely upon his acquaint- 
ance with it, and no one gave him uneasiness but 
the last ; for then he grieved that his work was done. 
Happier hours than those which have been spent on 
these meditations on the Songs of Sion, he never ex* 
pects to see in this world. Very pleasantly did they 
pass, and moved smoothly and swiftly along ; for 
when thus engaged, he counted no time. They are 
gone, but have left a relish and a fragrance upon the 
mind, and the remembrance of them is sweet. 

He has written to gratify no sect or party, but for 
the common service of all who call on the name of 
Jesus, wheresoever dispersed, and howsoever dis- 
tressed, upon the earth. When he views the innu- 
merable unhappy differences among Christians, all 
©f whom are equally oppressed with the cares and 



PREFACE. XXXiii 

calamities of life, he often calls to mind those beau- 
tiful and affecting words which Milton represents 
Adam as addressing to Eve, after they had wearied 
themselves with mutual complaints and accusations 
of each other. 

But rise, let us no more contend, nor blame 
Each other, blamed enough elsewhere ; but strive 
In offices of lo^e, how we may lighten 
Each other's burden in our share of woe. 

B. x. V. 958. 

Enough has been given to the arts of controversy. 
Let something be given to the studies of piety and a 
holy life. If we can once unite in these, our tem- 
pers may be better disposed to unite in doctrine. 
When we shall be duly prepared to receive it, 
" God may reveal even this unto us." 



4 

\ 



SELECTION 



FROM A 

COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS. 



PSALM II. 

One of the Proper Psalms appointed for 
Easter-Day, 

ARGUMENT. 

David, seated upon the throne of Israel, notwith- 
standing the opposition made against him, and 
now about to carry his victorious arms amongst the 
neighbouring heathen nations, may be supposed 
to have penned this as a kind of inauguration 
Psalm. But that a " greater than David is here," 
appears not only from the strength of the expres- 
sions, which are more properly applicable to Mes- 
siah, than to David himself; but also from the cita- 
tions made in the New Testament ; the appoint- 
ment of the Psalm by the church to be read on 
Easter day; and the confessions of the Jewish 
rabbis. It treats therefore, 1 — 3. of the oppo- 
sition raised, both by Jew and Gentile, against the 
kingdom of Jesus Christ ; 4 — 6. of his victory, 
and the confusion of his enemies ; 7 — 9» after his 



2 Commentary on Psalm n. 

resurrection, he preaches the Gospel; and, 10 — 
12. calls the kings of the earth to accept it ; de- 
nouncing vengeance against those who shall not do 
so, and pronouncing a blessing on those who shall. 

1. Why do the heathen rage, and the people ima- 
gine a vain thing ? 2. The kings of the earth set 
themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, 
against the Lord, and against his anointed, say- 
ing*— 

The true David is introduced, like his ancestor of 
old, expostulating with the nations, for their vain 
attempts to frustrate the divine decree in his favour. 
These two verses are cited, Acts iv. 27, and thus ex- 
pounded — '? Lord — of a truth, against thy holy child 
Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod and 
Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people 
of Israel, were gathered together, for to do whatso- 
ever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to 
be done." Persecution may be carried on by the 
people, but it is raised and fomented by kings and 
rulers. After the ascension of Christ, and the effu- 
sion of the Spirit, the whole power of the Roman 
empire was employed in the same cause, by those 
who, from time to time, swayed the sceptre of the 
world. But still, they who intended to extirpate the 
faith, and destroy the church, how many and how 
mighty soever they might be, were found only to 
" imagine a vain thing/' And' equally vain will every 
imagination be, that exalteth itself against the coun- 
sels of God for the salvation of his people. 

S. Let us break their hands asunder, and cast 
away their cords from us. 

These words, supposed to be spoken by the powers 
in arms against Messiah, discover to us the true 
ground of opposition, namely, the unwillingness of 
rebellious nature to submit to the obligations of 
divine laws, which cross the interests, and lay a re- 



Commentary on Psalm n. 3 

straint upon the desires of men. Corrupt affections 
are the most inveterate enemies of Christ; and their 
language is, " We will not have this man to reign 
over us." Doctrines would be readily believed, if 
they involved in them no precepts ; and the church 
may be tolerated by the world, if she will only give 
up her discipline. 

4. He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh : the 
Lord shall have them in derision. 

By these, and such like expressions, which fre- 
quently occur in the Scripture, we are taught, in 
a language which we understand, because borrowed 
from ourselves, and our manner of showing con- 
tempt, how the schemes of worldly politicians appear 
to him, who, sitting upon his heavenly throne, sur- 
veys at a glance whatever men are doing, or con- 
triving to do, upon the earth. This is the idea in- 
tended to be conveyed ; and from it we are to se- 
parate all notions of levity, or whatever else may of- 
fend when applied to the Godhead, though adhering 
to the phrases as in use among the sons of Adam. 
The same is to be said with regard to words which 
seem to attribute many other human passions and 
affections .to the Deity: as, for instance, these which 
follow :— 

5. Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, 
and vex them in his sore displeasure. 6. Yet have I 
set my King upon my holy hill of Zion. 

The meaning is, that by pouring out his indigna- 
tion upon the adversaries of Messiah, as formerly 
upon those of David, God would no less evidently 
convict and reprove their folly and impiety, than if 
he had actually thus spoken to them from his eternal 
throne above : " Yet, notwithstanding all your rage 
against him, have I raised from the dead, and ex- 
alted as the Head of the church, my appointed King 
Messiah ; in like manner as I once set his victorious 
representative David upon my holy hill of Sion, in 
the earthly Jerusalem, out of the reach of his nu- 
b 2 



4 Commentary on Psalm n. 



merous and implacable enemies." Let us reflect^ for 
our comfort, that He who raised up his Son Jesus, 
lias promised to raise up us also who believe in 
him ; and that the world can no more prevent the 
exaltation of the members, than it could prevent that 
of the Head. 

7. / ivill declare the decree : the Lord hath said 
unto me, Thou art my Son : this day have I begotten 
thee. 

Jesus, for the suffering of death, crowned with 
honour and immortality upon the holy hill of Zion, 
in the new Jerusalem, now " declares the decree," or 
preaches the Gospel of the everlasting covenant. 
His part in the covenant was performed by keeping 
the law, and dying for the sins of men. Nothing 
therefore remained, but the accomplishment of the 
promise made to him by the Father, upon those con- 
ditions. One part of his promise was fulfilled, saith 
St. 'Paul, f< in that he had raised up Jesus again ; as 
it is written in the second Psalm, Thou art my Son, 
this day have I begotten thee :" Acts xiii. S3. Ano- 
ther part was fulfilled at the ascension of Christ, and 
his inauguration to an eternal kingdom, and an un- 
changeable priesthood, as the true Melchizedek, 
King of righteousness, King of peace, and Priest of 
the most high God. The next article in the cove- 
nant, on the Father's side, was the enlargement of 
Messiah's spiritual kingdom, by the accession of the 
nations to the church. And accordingly, this was the 
next thing which " Jehovah said unto him," after 
having proclaimed his Sonship and pre-eminence ; as 
we find by the following verse : 

8. Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen 
for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of -the 
earth for thy possession. 

Christ was to enter upon the exercise of the inter- 
cessorial branch of his priestly office with a re ^ : ,st of 
the Father, that the " heathen world might be given 
for his inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the 



Commentary on Psalm, n, 5 



earth for his possession," in return for the labours he 
had undergone, and the pains he had endured : as also 
to supply the place of the Jews, who were his original 
*' inheritance and possession," but were cast off, be- 
cause of unbelief. That such request was made by 
Christ, and granted by the Father, the person who 
writes this, and he who reads it, in a once Pagan, 
but now Christian island, are both witnesses. 

9. Thou shall break them with a rod of iron ; thou 
shall dash them in pieces like a potter s vessel. 

The irresistible power and inflexible justice of 
Christ's kingdom are signified by his " ruling with a 
rod of iron P the impotence of those who presume 
to oppose him, is compared to that of "a potter's 
vessel," which must fly in pieces at the first stroke 
of the iron rod. The power of Christ will be mani- 
fested in all, by the destruction either of sin or the 
sinner. The hearts which now yield to the impres- 
sions of his Spirit, are broken only in order to be 
formed anew, and to become vessels of honour, fitted 
for the Master's use. Those which continue stubborn 
and hardened, must bedashed in pieces by the stroke 
of eternal vengeance. 

1 0. Be ye wise now therefore, O ye kings : be in- 
structed, ye judges of the earth. 11. Serve the Lord 
with fear, and rejoice with trembling. 

The decree of the Father, concerning the kingdom 
of the Son, being thus promulgated by the latter, an 
exhortation is made to the kings of the earth, that 
they would learn true wisdom, and suffer themselves 
to be instructed unto salvation : that they would bow 
their sceptres to the cross of Jesus, and cast their - 
crowns before his throne ; esteeming it a far greater 
honour, as well as a more exalted pleasure, to serve 
Him, than to find themselves at the head of victorious 
armies, surrounded by applauding nations. 

12. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye pe- 
rish from the way ; when his wrath is kindled but 
b 3 



6 Commentary on Psalm vi. 



a little, blessed are all they that put their trust in 
him. 

Christ beseeches kings, no less than their subjects, 
to be reconciled to him, and by him to the Father : 
since a day is at hand, when mighty men shall have 
no distinction, but that of being mightily tormented. 
And then will be seen the " blessedness" of those who 
" put their trust in" the Lord Jesus. For when 
the glory of man shall fade away as the short lived 
flower of the field, and when all, that is called great 
and honourable in princes, shall be laid low in the 
dust, he shall give unto his faithful servants a crown 
without cares, and a kingdom which cannot be 
moved. 



PSALM VI. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Ash- Wednesday. 

ARGUMENT. 

This is the first of those Psalms which are stylfed pe- 
nitential. It contains 1. a deprecation of eternaf 
vengeance, and 2, 3. a petition for pardon : which 
is enforced from the consideration of the penitent's 
sufferings ; 4. from that of the divine mercy ; 5. 
from that of the praise and glory which God would 
fail to receive if man were destroyed ; 6, 7. from 
that of the penitent's humiliation and contrition : 
8 — 10. the strain changes into one of joy and 
triumph, upon the success and return of the 
prayer. 

1. O Lord, rebuke me not in thine anger, neither 
chasten me in thy hot displeasure. 

Let us suppose a sinner awakened to a true sense 



Commentary on Psalm vi. 7 

of his condition, and looking around him for help. 
Above is an angry God preparing to take vengeance ; 
beneath, the fiery gulf ready to receive him ; with- 
out him, a world in flames; within, the gnawing 
worm. Thus situated, he begins, in extreme agony 
of Spirit, " O Lord rebuke me not in thine anger, 
neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure." He ex- 
pects that God will " rebuke" him, but only prays 
that it may not be " in anger" finally to destroy him ; 
he desires to be chastened, but chastened in fatherly 
love, not in the " hot displeasure" of an inexorable 
judge. As often as we are led thus to express our 
sense of sin, and dread of punishment, let us reflect 
on Him, whose righteous soul, endued with a sensibi- 
lity peculiar to itself, sustained the sins of the world 
and the displeasure of the Father. 

2. Have mercy upon me } O Lord, for I am 
weak: O Lord, heal me; for my hones are vexed, 
Heb. shaken, or, made to tremble. 

The penitent entreats for mercy, first, by repre- 
senting his pitiable case, under the image of sick- 
ness. He describes his soul as deprived of all its 
health and vigour, as languishing and fainting, by 
reason of sin, which had eat out the vitals, and 
shaken all the powers and supporters of the spiritual 
frame, so that the breath of life seemed to be de- 
parting. Enough however was left to supplicate 
the healing aid of the God of mercy and comfort ; to 
petition for oil and wine at the hands of the Phy- 
sician of spirits. How happy is it for us that we 
have a Physician, who cannot but be touched with 
a feeling of our infirmities, seeing that he himself 
once took them upon him, and suffered for them, 
even unto the death of the cross, under which he 
" fainted," and on which " his bones were vexed I" 

3. My soul is also sore vexed : but thou, O Lord, 
how long ? 

Another argument is drawn from the sense which 
b 4 



8 Commentary on Psalm vr. 



the penitent hath of this his woeful condition, and 
the consternation and anxiety produced thereby in 
his troubled mind. These cause him to fly for re- 
fuge to the hope set before him. u Hope deferred 
maketh the heart sick:" he is therefore beautifully 
represented as crying out, with a fond and longing 
impatience, " But thou, O Lord, how long ?" His 
strength is supposed to fail him, and the sentence is 
left imperfect. What, blessed Jesus, were thy 
" troubles," when to thy companions thou saidst, 
" My soul is exceeding sorrowful even unto death ?" 
By those thy sorrows we beseech thee to hear the 
voice of thine afflicted church, crying to thee from 
the earth, " Mv soul also is sore troubled ; but thou, 
O Lord, how long ffi 

4. Return, O Lord, deliver my soul : Oh, save 
me for thy mercies' sake. 

A third argument is formed upon the considera- 
tion of God's " mercy ;" for the sake of which, as it 
is promised to penitents, he is requested to " return," 
or to turn himself towards the suppliant ; to lift up 
his countenance on the desponding heart ; to " de- 
liver" it from darkness and the shadow of death, and 
to diffuse around it light and life, salvation, joy, and 
gladness, like the sun in the morning, when he revisits 
a benighted world, and calls up the creation to bless 
the Maker of so glorious a luminary, so bright a re- 
presentative of redeeming love. 

5. For in death there is no remembrance of thee ; 
in the grave who shall give thee thanks? 

The fourth argument proceeds upon a supposition, 
that God created man for his own glory, which, 
therefore, would be so far diminished, if man were 
permitted finally to perish. The body could not glo- 
rify God, unless raised from the dead, nor could the 
soul, if left in hell. The voice of thanksgiving is not 
heard in the grave, and no hallelujahs are sung in 
the pit of destruction. This plea, now urged by the 



Commentary on Psalm vi. 9 

church, was urged for her without all doubt by her 
Saviour in his devotions, and prevailed in his mouth, 
as, through him, it will do in hers. 

6. / am weary with my groaning ; all the night 
make I my bed to swim ; I water my couch with my 
tears. 

The penitent is supplied with a fifth argument, by 
the signs and fruits of a sincere repentance, which 
put forth themselves in him. Such was his sorrow, 
and such revenge did he take upon himself, that for 
every idle word he now poured forth a groan, like 
him that is in anguish through extremity of bodily 
pain, until he was " weary," but yet continued groan- 
ing ; while the sad remembrance of each wanton 
folly drew a tear from the fountains of grief. The 
all-righteous Saviour himself wept over sinners ; sin- 
ners read the story, and yet return again to their 
sins ! 

7. Mine eye is consumed because of grief ; it 
waxeth old because of all mine enemies. 

Grief exhausts the animal spirits, dims the eyes, 
and brings on old age before its time. Thus it is 
said, concerning the man of sorrows, that, " many 
were astonished at him, his visage was so marred, 
more than any man, and his form more than the sons 
of men :" Isa. lii. 14. How long, in these times, 
might youth and beauty last, were godly sorrow their 
only enemy ! 

8. Depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity, for 
the Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping. 9. 
The Loud hath heard my supplication; the Lord 
will hear, or hath heard, my prayer. 

Repentance, having performed her task, having 
taught her votary to forsake sin, and to renounce all 
communication with sinners, now gives place to faith, 
which appears with the glad tidings of pardon and 
acceptance, causing the penitent to rejoice in God 
his Saviour, with joy unspeakable ; and inspiring his 
heart with vigour and resolution to run his course in 
b5 



10 Commentary on Psalm vni. 

the way of righteousness. Risen to newness of life, 
he defies the malice, and predicts the final overthrow, 
of his spiritual adversaries. 

10. Let all mine enemies, or, all mine enemies shall, 
be ashamed, and sore vexed : let them, or, they shall, 
return, and be ashamed suddenly. 

Many of the mournful Psalms end in this manner, 
to instruct the believer, that he is continually to look 
forward, and solace himself with beholding that day, 
when his warfare shall be accomplished ; when sin 
and sorrow shall be no more ; when sudden and ever- 
lasting confusion shall cover the enemies of righte- 
ousness ; when the sackcloth of the penitent shall 
be exchanged for a robe of glory, and every tear be- 
come a sparkling gem in his crown ; when to sighs 
and groans shall succeed the songs of heaven, set 
to angelic harps, and faith shall be resolved into the 
vision of the Almighty. 



PSALM VIIL 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Ascension-day, 

ARGUMENT. 

This is the first of those Psalms which the Church 
has appointed to be read on Ascension-day. It 
treats, as appears from Heb. ii. 6, &c. of the won- 
derful love of God, shewn by the exaltation of our 
nature in the Messiah, or the second Adam, to the 
right hand of the Majesty on high, and by the 
subjection of all creatures to the word of his 
power. 

1. O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name 
in all the earth i who hast set thy glory above the 
heavens. 



Commentary on Psalm viii. 



11 



The Prophet beholds in spirit the sufferings of 
Christ, and the glory that should follow ; like St. 
Stephen afterward, he sees heavenopened, and Jesus 
standing at the right hand of God ; the sight fills his 
heart with wonder, love, and devotion, which break 
forth in this address to " Jehovah," as " our Lord 
for such he is by the twofold right of creation and 
redemption, having made us, and purchased us. On 
both accounts, " how excellent," how full of beauty 
and honour, is his name, diffused by the Gospel 
through " all the earth i" But more especially do 
men and angels admire and adore him for the exalta- 
tion of his " glory," the glory of the only begotten, 
high " above the heavens," and all created nature, to 
the throne prepared for him before the foundation 
of the world. 

2. Out of tJie month of babes and sucklings hast 
thou ordained, Heb. founded ,or constituted, strength, 
because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the 
enemy and the avenger. 

This verse is cited by our Lord, Matt. xxi. 16. 
and applied to " little children in the temple, crying, 
Hosanna to the Son of David !" which vexed and 
confounded his malignant adversaries. The import 
of the words, therefore, plainly is, that the praises 
of Messiah, celebrated in the church by his children, 
have in them a strength and power which nothing 
can withstand ; they can abash infidelity, when at 
its greatest height, and strike hell itself dumb. In 
the citation made by our Lord, which the Evangelist 
gives from the Greek of the LXX, we read, " thou 
hast perfected praise," which seems to be rather a 
paraphrase than a translation of the Hebrew, literally 
rendered by our translators, " thou hast ordained 
strength." 

3. When I consider thy heavens, the ivork of thy 
fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast or- 
dained : 4. What is man, that thou art mindful of 
him ? and the son of man, that thou visitest him 2 

' b 6 



1 2 Commentary on Psalm vnr. 

At the time of inditing this Psalm, David is evi- 
dently supposed to have had before his eyes the 
heavens as they appear by night. He is struck with 
the awful magnificence of the wide-extended firma- 
ment, adorned by the moon walking in brightness,, 
and rendered brilliant by the vivid lustre of a multi- 
tude of shining orbs, differing from each other in 
magnitude and splendour. And when, from survey- 
ing the beauty of heaven, with its glorious show, he 
turns to take a view of the creature man, he is still 
more affected by the mercy, than he had before been 
by the majesty, of the Lord; since far less wonder- 
ful it is, that God should make such a world as this, 
than that He, who made such a world as this, should 
be "mindful of man" in his fallen estate, and should 
" visit" human nature with his salvation. 

5. For thou hast made him a little, or for a little 
while lower than the angels, and hast crowned him 
with glory and honour. 6. Thou madest him to have 
dominion over the works of thy hands : thou hast put 
all things under Ms feet. 

On these two verses, with that preceding, St. 
Paul has left the following comment : " One in a 
certain place testified, saying, What is man, that 
thou art mindful of him ? or the son of man, that 
thou visitest him ? Thou madest him a little lower 
than [marg. a little while inferior to] the angels ; 
thou crownedst him with glory and honour, and 
didst set him over the works of thy hands ; thou hast 
put all things in subjection under his feet. For in 
that he put all in subjection under him, he left no- 
thing that is not put under him. But now we see 
not yet all tilings put under him. But we see 
Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, 
for the suffering of death crowned with glory and 
honour." Heb. ii. 6. &c. See also 1 Cor. xv. 27. 

7. All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the 
field; 8. The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, 
and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the sea. 



Commentary on Psalm viii. 13 



Adam, upon his creation, was invested with sove- 
reign dominion over the creatures, in words of the 
same import with these; Gen. i. 28, which are there- 
fore here used, and the creatures particularised, to 
inform us, that what the first Adam lost by trans- 
gression, the second Adam regained by obedience. 
That " glory," which was " set above the heavens," 
could not but be over all things on " the earth." 
And accordingly, we hear our Lord saying, after his 
resurrection, " All power is given unto me in heaven 
and in earth :" Matt, xxviii. 18. Itfor is it a specu- 
lation unpleasing, or unprofitable, to consider, that 
he who rules over the material world, is Lord also 
of the intellectual, or spiritual creation, represented 
thereby. The souls of the faithful, lowly and harm- 
less, are the sheep of his pasture ; those who, like 
oxen, are strong to labour in the church, and who, 
by expounding the word of life, tread out the corn 
for the nourishment of the people, own him for their 
kind and beneficent Master ; nay, tempers fierce and 
untractable as the wild beasts of the desert, are yet 
subject to his will; spirits of the angelic kind, that, 
like the birds of the air, traverse freely the superior 
region, move at his command ; and those evil ones, 
whose habitation is in the deep abyss, even to the 
great Leviathan himself ; all, all, are put under the 
feet of King Messiah ; who, " because he humbled 
himself, and became obedient unto death, even the 
death of the cross, was therefore highly exalted, 
and had a name given him above every name, that 
at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, whe- 
ther of things in heaven, or things on earth ; or 
things under the earth ; and that every tongue should 
confess that Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the 
Father." Phil. ii. 8, &c. 

9. O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name 
in all the earth ! 

Let therefore the universal chorus of men and 



Commentary on Psalm xv. 



angels join their voices together, and make their 
sound to be heard as one, in honour of the Re- 
deemer, evermore praising him, and saying, O 
Lord, our Lord Jesu Christ, King of Righteous- 
ness, Peace, and Glory, King of kings, and Lord of 
lords, how excellent, how precious, how lovely, how 
great and glorious is thy Name, diffused over all 
the earth, for the salvation of thy chosen ! Bless- 
ing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him 
that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, 
for ev-er and ever. And let heaven and earth, say, 
Amen. 



PSALM XV. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Ascension-day, 

ARGUMENT. 

This is one of the Psalms appointed to be used on 
Ascension-day. The Prophet, 1. inquires con- 
cerning the person, who should ascend into the 
hill, and dwell in the temple of Jehovah ; — 2 — 5. 
he receives, in answer to his question, a character 
of such person. 

1. Lord, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? Who 
shall dioell in thy holy hill ? 

The Prophet alludes to the hill of Zion in the 
earthly Jerusalem, to the tabernacle of God which 
was thereon, and the character of the priest, who 
should officiate in that tabernacle. But all these 
were figures of a celestial Jerusalem, a spiritual 
Zion, a true tabernacle, and an eternal priest. To 
the great originals therefore we must transfer our 
ideas, and consider the inquiry as made after Him, 
who should fix his resting-place on the heavenly 



Commentary on Psalm xv. 



15 



mount, and exercise his unchangeable priesthood 
in. the temple not made with hands. And since the 
disciples of this new and great High Priest become 
righteous in him, and are by the Spirit conformed 
to his image, the character which essentially and 
inherently belongs only to him, will derivatively be- 
long to them also, who must follow his steps below, 
if they would reign with him above. 

2. He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righte- 
ou'sness, and speaketh the truth in his heart. 

The man, therefore, who would be a citizen of 
Zion, and there enter into the rest and joy of his 
Lord, mus? set that Lord always before him. Re- 
newed through grace, endued with a lively faith, and 
an operative charity, he must consider and imitate 
the life of that blessed Person who walked amongst 
men, without partaking of their corruptions ; who 
conversed unblameably with sinners ; who could give 
this challenge to his inveterate enemies, " Which 
" of you convinceth me of sin?" in whom the grand 
Accuser, when he came, " found nothing who, 
being himself " the Truth," thought and spake of 
nothing else ; making many promises, and perform- 
ing them- all, 

3. He that bachbiteth not with his tongue, nor 
doeth evil to his neighbour, nor taketh up a reproach 
against his neighbour. 

Who, knowing the sins, follies, and infirmities of 
all mankind, made his tongue an instrument, not of 
disclosing and exasperating, but of covering and 
healing these sores in human nature ; who, esteem- 
ing every son of Adam as his neighbour, went about 
doing good ; and then laid down his life, and resigned 
his breath in prayer for his murderers; who, instead 
of taking up a reproach, and listening to the calum- 
niator, cast him out, and silenced him, by erasing 
the hand-writing that was against us, and nailing the 
cancelled indictment to the cross. 

4. In whose eyes a vile person is contemned ; but 



16 Commentary on Psalm xv. 

he honoureth them that fear the Lord ; he that 
sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not. 

Who rejecteth the wicked, however rich and ho- 
nourable ; and chose the well inclined, however poor 
and contemptible in the world ; who having, by co- 
venant with the Father, engaged to keep the law ; 
and to taste death for every man, went willingly and 
steadily through this work, and surmounted every 
obstacle which could be thrown in his way, until he 
declared, concerning the task appointed him, " It is 
finished." 

5. He that putteth not out his money to usury, 
nor taketh. reward against the innocent. 

Who was so far from desiring to amass the earthly 
.mammon, that he would touch none of it ; and re- 
ceived the true riches, only that he might bestow 
them upon others ; who, instead of taking a reward 
against the innocent, died for the guilty ; and whose 
sentence, when he shall sit on the throne of judg- 
ment, will be equally impartial and immutable. 

6. He that doeth these things, shall never be 
moved. 

in the above comment, it was thought most ad- 
visable to open and display the full intent of what 
was both enjoined and forbidden, by exemplifying 
each particular, as receiving its utmost completion, 
in the character and conduct of our blessed Lord. 
And whoever shall survey and copy these virtues 
and graces, as they present themselves in his life, 
will, it is humbly apprehended, take the best and 
shortest way to the heavenly Zion, and make that 
use of the xvth Psalm, which the Church may be 
supposed to have had in view, when she appointed 
it as one of the proper Psalms for Ascension-day. 



Commentary on Psalm xvi. 17 



PSALM XVI. 

ARGUMENT. 

Upon whatever occasion, or in whatever distress, 
David might compose this Psalm, we are taught 
by St. Peter and St. Paul, Acts ii, 25. and xiih 
35. to consider him as speaking in the person of 
our Lord Christ, of whom alone the latter part of 
the Psalm is true. The contents are, 1. a prayer 
for support; 2, 3. a declaration of love to the 
saints ; 4. a protestation against idolaters ; 5 — 8. 
acts of love, joy, and confidence in Jehovah ; and 
9 — 11. one of hope in an approaching resurrec- 
tion and glorification. 

1. Preserve me, O God; for in thee do I put my 
trust. 

These words are evidently spoken by one in great 
distress, who addresses himself to heaven for sup- 
port under Ins sufferings, pleading his confidence in 
God, still unshaken by all the storms that had set 
themselves against it. This might be the case of 
David, and may be that of any believer. But 
since the Psalm is a continued speech without change 
of person, we may consider the whole as uttered by, 
Him who only could utter the concluding verses, 
and who in this first verse makes his supplication 
to the Father, for the promised and expected deli- 
verance. 

2. O my soul, thou hast said unto the Lord, 
Thou art my Lord ; my goodness extendeth not to 
thee ; 3. But to the saints that are in the earth, and 
to the excellent, in whom is all my delight. 

In the Chaldee and Syriac, the latter clause of the 



18 Commentary on Psalm xvi. 

former of these two verses is rendered — " my good- 
ness is from thee." An ingenious writer thinks the 
Hebrew will bear this sense, in the elliptical way, 
thus — " My goodness; shall I mention that? By 
no means ; it is all to be ascribed to thee." *The 
goodness of man is all derived from God, and should 
be extended to his brethren. That of Messiah 
owed its original to his union with the Divinity : 
and promoted the salvation of those to whom it was 
communicated, that is to say, of those who thereby 
became " the saints and excellent ones in the earth." 
For their sakes obedience was performed, and pro- 
pitiation made, by the Son of God, because he loved 
them with an everlasting love, and placed " all his 
delight" in making them happy. He rejoiced in 
" the habitable parts of the earth, and his delights 
were with the sons of men." Pro v. viii. 31. 

4. Their sorrow shall be multiplied that hasten 
after another god : their drink-offerings of blood 
will I not offer, nor take up their names into my 
lips. 

Christ denounceth vengeance against those w T ho 
should make to themselves other gods, run after other 
saviours, or suffer any creature to rival him in their 
affections; declaring of such, that their offerings 
should not be presented by him to the Father, nor 
should they be partakers of the benefits of his inter- 
cession. Even the bloody sacrifices of the law, in- 
stituted for a time by God himself, became abomina- 
tion to him when that time was expired, and the one 
great sacrifice had been offered upon the altar of 
the cross. 

5. The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance, 
and of my cup ; thou maintainesi my lot. 6. The 
lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places : yea, I 
have a goodly heritage. 

The true David, anointed to his everlasting king- 
dom, yet first a man of sorrows and a stranger upon 
earth, prefers the promised inheritance of the 



Commentary on Psalm xvi. 19 



church, that spiritual kingdom, city, and temple of 
Jehovah, before all the kingdoms of this world, and 
the glory of them ; he is sure that Jehovah will main- 
tain his lot, that he will both give and preserve to him 
this his patrimony; and therefore rejoices at the di- 
vine beauty and excellency of the heavenly Canaan. 
And hence the Christian learns wherein his duty and 
his happiness consist : namely, in making choice of 
God " for the portion of his inheritance and of his 
cup," for his support and for his delight ; in prefer- 
ring the spirit to the flesh, the church to the world, 
and eternity to time. 

7. I will bless the IuORT>,ivho hath given me coun- 
sel ; my reins also instruct me in the night seasons. 

The person speaking here blesses J ehovah for com- 
municating that divine " counsel," that celestial wis- 
dom, by which he was incited and enabled to make 
the foregoing choice and resolution. In the latter 
part of the verse is intimated the mode of these gra- 
cious and spiritual communications, which in the dark 
seasons of adversity were conveyed to the inmost 
thoughts and affections of the mind, thereby to in- 
struct, to comfort, and to strengthen the sufferer, 
until his passion should be accomplished, and the 
morning of the resurrection should dawn, in which 
as we shall see, all his hope and confidence were 
placed. 

8. i" have set the Lord always before me ; because 
he is at my right hand 1 shall not he moved. 

The method taken by Christ as man, to support 
himself in time of trouble, and persevere unto the 
end, was to maintain a constant actual sense of the 
presence of Jehovah, whom whenhethus saw standing 
at his right hand, ready at the appointed hour to suc- 
cour and deliver him, he then feared not the powers 
of earth and hell combined for his destruction. Why 
are our fears great, but because our faith is little ? 

9. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory re- 
jo icet J i ; my flesh also shall rest in hope* 



20 Commentary on Psalm xvi. 

Through confidence in the almighty power en- 
gaged on his side, joy filled the heart of Christ, and 
rendered his tongue an instrument of giving glory to 
Jehovah in the midst of his sufferings ; because when 
they were ended, as they must soon be, his flesh was 
only to make its bed, and rest awhile in the grave, 
after the labours of the day, in sure and certain hope 
of a speedy resurrection and glorification. This same 
consideration is to the afflicted, the sick, and the 
dying Christian, a never-failing source of comfort, an 
inexhaustible fountain of joy : sin and infidelity are 
the enemies, who would fill it with earth. 

10. For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell ; nei- 
ther wilt thou suffer thy Holy One to see corrup- 
tion. 

It was a part of the covenant of grace, and pro- 
mised by the mouth of God's prophets, that after 
the death of Messiah, his animal frame, t#HD, should 
not continue like those of other men, in the grave, 
nor should corruption be permitted to seize 
on the body, by which all others were to be raised 
to incorruption and immortality. As members of 
Christ, this same promise and assurance is so far ours, 
that although our mortal part must see corruption, 
yet it shall not be finally left under the power of the 
enemy, but shall be raised again, and reunited to its 
old companion the soul, which exists, meanwhile, in 
secret and undiscerned regions, there waiting for 
the day when its Redeemer shall triumph over cor- 
ruption, in his mystical, as he hath already done in 
his natural body. 

11. Thou wilt show me the path of life; in thy 
presence is fulness of joy ; at thy right hand there 
are pleasures for evermore. 

The return of Christ from the grave is beautifully 
described by Jehovah " showing," or discovering to 
him a " path of life," leading through the valley of 
the shadow of death, and from that valley to the 
summit of the hill of Zion, or to the mount of God 



Commentary on Psalm xvm. 2 1 

in heaven, on which he now sits enthroned. There, 
exalted at the right hand of the Father, that human 
body, which expired on the cross, and slept in the 
sepulchre, lives and reigns, filled with delight, and 
encircled by glory incomprehensible and endless. 
Through this thy beloved Son and our dear Saviour 
" thou shalt show" us likewise, O Lord, " the path 
of life fa thou shalt justify our souls by thy grace 
now, and raise our bodies by thy power at the last 
day; when earthly sorrow shall terminate in hea- 
venly joy : and momentary pain shall be rewarded 
with everlasting felicity. 



PSALM XVIII. 

ARGUMENT. 

This Psalm, as we are informed by the sacred his- 
tory, 2 Sam. xxii. 1. was composed and sung by 
David, in the day that the Lord had delivered him 
out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the 
hand of Saul. It contains, ver. 1 — 3. an addi*ess 
of thanks to Jehovah ; 4 — 6. a relation of suffer- 
ings undergone, and prayers made for assistance ; 
7— -15. a magnificent description of the divine in- 
terposition in favour of the sufferer, and 16 — 19, 
of the deliverance wrought for him, 20— 24. in 
consideration of his righteousness, 25 — 28, ac- 
cording to the tenour of God's equitable proceed- 
ing; 29—36. to Jehovah is ascribed the glory of 
the victory, which, 37 — 42. is represented as every 
way complete, by the destruction of all opponents, 
and, 43 — 45. the submission of the heathen ; for 



22 Commentary on Psalm xvm. 

these events, 46—50. God is blessed and praised. 
As the sublimity of the figures used in this Psalm, 
and the consent of ancient commentators, even 
Jewish as well as Christian, but above all, the 
citations made from it in the New Testament, do 
evince, that the kingdom of Messiah is here 
pointed at, under that of David, an application 
is therefore made of the whole, in the ensuing 
comment, to the sufferings, resurrection, righteous- 
ness, and conquests of Christ, to the destruction 
of the Jews, and conversion of the Gentiles. In 
a word, the Psalm it is apprehended, should now 
be considered as a glorious epinikion, or triumphal 
hymn, to be sung by the church, risen and victo- 
rious in Christ her head. 

1. I will love thee , O Lord, my strength. 

Let us suppose king Messiah, like his illustrious 
progenitor of old, seated in peace and triumph upon 
the throne designed and prepared for him. From 
thence let us imagine him taking a retrospect view 
of the sufferings he had undergone, the battles he 
had fought, and the victories he had gained. With 
this idea duly impressed upon our minds, we shall 
be able, in some measure, to conceive the force of 
the words, " fDITIft, with all the yearnings of affec- 
tion : I will love thee, O Jehovah, my strength, 
through my union with whom, I have finished my 
work, and am now exalted to praise thee, in the 
name of a redeemed world." Whenever we sing this 
Psalm, let us think we are singing it in conjunction 
with our Saviour, newly risen from the dead; a con- 
sideration which surely will incite us to do it with 
becoming gratitude and devotion. 

% The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and 



Commentary on Psalm xviii. 23 

my deliverer ; my God, my strength, in whom I 
trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, 
and my high tower. 

In other words, explanatory of the figures here 
made use of, Through Jehovah it is, that I have 
stood immovable amidst a sea of temptations and 
afflictions ; he has supported me under my troubles, 
and delivered me out of them ; his protection has 
secured me, his power has broken and scattered 
mine enemies ; and by his mercy and truth am I now 
set up on high above them all.— How lovely these 
strains, in the mouth of the church militant ! How 
glorious will they be, when sung by the church 
triumphant ! It is observable, that the words, " in 
whom I trust/', or, as the original has it, " I will 
trust in him," are referred to, in the margin of our 
English Bible, as quoted from this verse by St. Paul, 
Heb. ii. 13. If it be so, the reader, by turning to 
the place, may furnish himself with a demonstration, 
that in the xviiith, as well as in the xvith Psalm, 
David speaks in the person of Christ. 

S, I will, or did, call upon the Lord, who is 
worthy to be praised ; so shall I be, or, so was I, 
saved from mine enemies. 

As the Psalm so evidently throughout is a thanks- 
giving for past deliverances, the verbs in this verse 
seem to require the same rendering which is given to 
them below, at ver. 6. Jehovah is to be " called 
upon" both in adversity and in prosperity ; in the 
former with the voice of prayer, in the latter with 
that of praise. " Is any afflicted ?" saith St. James, 
v. 13. " Let him pray. Is any merry? let him 
sing Psalms." 

4. The sorrows, or, cords, of death compassed me, 
and the floods of ungodly men, or, Belial, made me 
afraid, 5, The sorrows, or, cords of hell, or, the 
grave, compassed me about; the snares of death pre- 
vented me, 

St. Peter, in his sermon on the day of Pentecost 
11 



24 Commentary on Psalm xvin. 

says, when speaking of Christ — " Whom God hath 
raised up, having loosed the pains of death, be- 
cause it was not possible that he should be holden 
of it :" Acts ii. 24. " Now the Hebrew word ^jjf" 
(as Dr. Hammond well observes on that place) 
" signifies two things, a cord or band, and a pang, 
especially of woman in travail ; hence the LXX 
meeting with the word, Ps. xviii. where it certainly 
signifies yoivia, cords, or bands, have yet rendered 
it waives, pangs; and from their example here, 
St. Luke hath used rag toSivag Savarov, the pains or 
pangs of death ; when *ioth the addition of the 
word Xwag, loosing, and wruaQai, being holden fast, 
do show the sense is be ids, or cords." From the 
passage in the Acts, with this learned and judicious 
remark upon it, we obtain not only the true rendering 
of the phrase " j-flft cords or bands of death," 
but also something more than an intimation that, in 
the verses of our Psalm now before us, David speaks 
of Christ, that the " cords of death," those " bands" 
due to our sins, " compassed him about, and the 
floods of Belial," the powers of darkness and un- 
godliness, like an overwhelming torrent breaking 
forth from the bottomless pit, " made him afraid," 
in the day of his agony, when the apprehensions of 
the bitter cup cast his soul into unutterable amaze- 
ment, and he beheld himself environed by those 
" snares" which had captivated and detained all the 
children of Adam. David, surrounded by Saul and 
his blood-thirsty attendants, was a lively emblem of 
the suffering Jesus, and therefore the same descrip- 
tion is applicable to both ; as the words of the 
second Psalm, in like manner, celebrate the inau- 
guration of the son of Jesse, and that of the Son of 
God. 

6. In my distress I called upon the Lord, and 
cried\nto my God: he heard my voice out of his 
temple, and my cry came before him, even into his 
ears. 



Commentary on Psalm xvui. 25 

David was in distress; David called upon Je- 
hovah, the God of Israel, who dwelt between the 
Cherubims in the holy place ; and by him the prayer 
of David was heard. Much greater was the distress 
of Christ, who likewise, as St. Paul speaks, " in the 
days of his flesh offered up prayers and supplica- 
tions with strong crying pnd tears, unto him that 
was able to save him from death, and was heard 
Heb. v. 7. his voice ascended to the eternal temple, 
his powerful cry pierced the ears of the Father ever- 
lasting, and brought salvation from heaven at the 
time appointed. The churc also is distressed upon 
earth, she crieth, her cries: are heard, and will be 
answered in the day of God. 

7. Then the earth shook and trembled; the founda- 
tions also of the hills moved and were shaken, because 
he was wroth. 

At this verse the Prophet begins to describe the 
manifestation of divine power in favour of the 
Righteous Sufferer. The imagery employed is bor- 
rowed from mount Sinai, and those circumstances 
which attended the delivery of the law from thence. 
When a monarch is angry, and prepares for war, his 
whole kingdom is instantly in commotion. Universal 
nature is here represented as feeling the effects of its 
Sovereign's displeasure, and all the visible elements 
are disordered. The earth shakes from its founda- 
tions, and all its rocks and mountains tremble before 
the Majesty of their great Creator, when he ariseth 
in judgement. This was really the case at the resur- 
rection of our Lord from the dead ; when, as the 
Evangelist informs us, " there was a great earth- 
quake," and the grave owned its inability any 
longer to detain the blessed body, which had been 
committed for a season to its custody. And what 
happened at the ressurection of Jesus, should remind 
us of what shall happen, when the earth shall trem- 
ble, and the dead shall be raised at the last day. 

8. There went up a smoke out of his nostrils, and 



26 Commentary on Psalm x.vm. 

fire out of his mouth devoured: coals were kindled 
by it ; or, fire out of his mouth devoured, with 
burning coals from before him. 

The farther effects of God's indignation are re- 
presented by those of fire, which is the most terrible 
of the created elements, burning and consuming all 
before it, scorching the ground, and causing the 
mountains to smoke. Under this appearance God 
descended on the top of Sinai : thus he visited the 
cities of the plain; and thus he is to come at the 
end of time* Whenever therefore he is described 
as showing forth his power and vengeance for the 
salvation of his chosen, and the discomfiture of his 
enemies, a " devouring fire" is the emblem made 
choice of to convey proper ideas of such his manifes- 
tations. And from hence we may conceive that 
heat of his wrath against the adversaries of man's 
salvation, when, by raising his Son Jesus from the 
dead, he blasted their schemes, and withered all 
their strength. 

9. He bowed tlie Heavens also, and came down : 
and darkness was under his feet- 10. And he. rode 
upon a cherub , and did fly ; yea, he did fly on the 
wings of the wind, 11. He made darkness his 
secret place; his pavilion round about him were dark 
waters and thick clouds of the skies. 

Storms and tempests in the element of air are 
instruments of the divine displeasure, and are there- 
fore selected as figures of it. When God descends 
from above, the clouds of heaven compose an awful 
and gloomy tabernacle, in the midst of which he is 
supposed to reside : the reins of whirlwinds are in 
his hand, and he directs their impetuous course 
through the world ; the whole artillery of the aerial 
regions is at his command, to be by him employed 
against his enemies, in the day of battle and war. 

12. At the brightness that was before him, his 
thick clouds passed, hail stones and coals of fire, 
10, The Lord also thundered in the heavens, and 



Commentary on Psalm xvm. 27 



the Highest gave his voice ; hail stones and coals of 
fire, 14. Yea, he sent out his arrows, and scat- 
tered them ; and he shot out lightnings, and discom- 
fited them. 

The discharge of the celestial artillery upon the 
adverse powers is here magnificently described. 
Terrible it was to them, as when lightnings and 
thunders, hail-stones and balls of fire, making their 
way through the dark clouds which contain them, 
strike terror and dismay into the hearts of men. 
Such is the " voice," and such are the " arrows," 
of the Lord Almighty, wherewith he " discomfiteth" 
all who oppose the execution of his counsels, and 
obstruct the salvation of his chosen. Every display 
and description of this sort, and indeed every 
thunder-storm which we behoid, should remind us of 
that exhibition of power and vengeance, which is 
hereafter to accompany the general resurrection. 

15. Then the channels of waters were seen, and 
the foundations of the world were discovered at thy 
rebuke, O Lord, at the blast of the breath of thy 
nostrils. 

As the former part of the Psalmist's description 
was taken from the appearance on mount Sinai, so 
this latter part seems evidently to allude to what 
passed at the Red Sea, when by the breath of God 
the waters were divided, the depths were discovered, 
and Israel was conducted in safety through them. 
By that event was prefigured the salvation of the 
church universal, through the death and resurrection 
of Christ, who descended into the lower parts of the 
earth, and from thence re-ascended to light and life. 
The xivth chapter of Exodus, which relates the pas? 
sage of Israel through the Red Sea, is therefore ap* 
pointed as one of the proper lessons on Easter Day. 
And thus we obtain the ideas intended to be conveyed 
in this sublime but difficult verse, together with their 
application to the grand deliverance of the true 
David, in the day of Gods power. Indeed it is not 



28 Commentary on Psalm xvnf . 

easy to accommodate to any part of the history of 
the son of Jesse those awful, majestic, and stupen- 
dous images, which are made use of throughout this 
whole description of the divine manifestation, from 
verse 7. But, however this be, most certainly 
every part of so solemn a scene of terrors forbids 
us to doubt but that a " greater than David is 
here ;" since creation scarce affords colours brighter 
and stronger than those here employed, wherewith 
to paint the appearance of Jehovah at the day of 
final redemption. 

16. He sent from above, he took me, he drew me 
out of many, or, the great, vmters. 17. He deliver- 
ed me from my strong enemy, and from them which 
hated me : for they were too strong for me. 

For this purpose did God in so wonderful a manner 
display his power and glory, that he might deliver 
the sufferer out of his troubles. This deliverance 
is first expressed metaphorically, by " drawing him 
*{ out of the great waters/' and then plainly, '* he 
" delivered me from my strong enemy," &c. The 
" great waters," in ver. 16 are the same with " the 
f< floods of the ungodly/' in ver. 4. By these was 
Messiah, like David, oppressed and overwhelmed 
for a time ; but like David, he arose at length 
superior to them all. The "strong enemy" was 
obliged to give way to a "stronger than he, who 
i{ overcame him, and took from him his armour in 
" which he trusted, and divided the spoil :" Luke 
xi. 22. 

18. They prevented me in the day of my cala- 
mity ; hut the Lord was my stay. 19. He brought 
me forth also into a large place : he delivered me, 
because he delighted in me. 

The divine mercy is celebrated again and again 
through this sacred hymn, in a variety of expres- 
sions. Innumerable foes " prevented," that is, sur- 
rounded, enclosed Christ on all sides, " in the day 
*' of his calamity," when the powers of earth and 



Commentary on Psalm xvm. 29 

hell 3et themselves in array against him ; but "Je- 
44 hovah was his stay ;" on him he reposed an un- 
shaken confidence : Jehovah therefore supported 
his steps, and led him on to victory and triumph; 
from the narrow confines of the grave he translated 
him to unbounded empire, because he was the son 
of his love, in whom he delighted. 

20. The Lord rewarded me according to my 
righteousness ; according to the cleanness of my 
hands hath he recompensed me. 21. For I have 
kept the ways of the Lord, and have not wickedly 
departed from my God. 22. For all his judgements 
were before me, and 1 did not put away his statutes 
from me. 23. I was also upright before him, and I 
kept myself from mine iniquity, or, from iniquities, 
24. Therefore hath the Lord recompensed me ac- 
cording to my righteousness, according to the clean" 
ness of my hands in his eye-sight. 

Commentators have been much perplexed to ac- 
count for those unlimited claims to righteousness 
made by David, and that, long after the matter of 
Uriah, and towards the close of life. Certain 
indeed it is, that the expressions, considered as 
David's, must be confined either to his steadfast 
adherence to the true worship in opposition to idol- 
atry, or to his inuocency with regard to some par- 
ticular crimes falsely alleged against him by his 
adversaries. But if the Psalm be prophetical, and 
sung by the victorious monarch in the person of 
King Messiah ; then do the verses now before us no 
less exactly than beautifully delineate that all-perfect 
righteousness wrought by the Redeemer, in conse- 
quence of which, he obtained deliverance for him- 
self and his people. For " His" righteousness' 
sake Jehovah was well pleased, and rewarded with 
everlasting felicity the unspotted purity of his works: 
w He" performed an unsinning obedience to every 
part of the law, and swerved not from its line in a 
single instance : the rule was ever in his eye, and 
c3 



30 Commentary on Psalm xviu. 

no temptation could induce him to deviate from its 
direction; like the light, he passed through all 
things undefiled, and his garments were white 
as the lily ; therefore a glorious kingdom was given 
unto him, forasmuch as in him the piercing eye of 
heaven could discover no blemish at all. 

25. With the merciful thou wilt show thyself 
merciful; with an upright man thou wilt show thy- 
self upright ; 26. With the pure thou wilt show 
thyself jmre ; and with the froward thou wilt show 
thyself froward; Heb. with the perverse thou wilt 
wrestle, or, strive. 

The reason is here assigned why God " recom- 
pensed Messiah according to the cleanness of his 
hands, " namely, because he is just, in rendering to 
every one according to his works. He who is 
" merciful" to his brethren shall obtain the divine 
mercy; he who is " upright" in his dealings with 
others, will have justice done him by the great 
Judge, against his iniquitous oppressors ; he who is 
<c pure" from deceit and hypocrisy in the service of 
his God, shall experience in himself a faithful and 
exact performance of the promises which God hath 
made to such ; but the man that is " froward,'' per- 
verse, and rebellious, must expect to grapple with 
an arm which will either humble or destroy. See 
Levit. xxvi 3, 4, &c. 23, 24, &c. 1 Kings, viii. 32. 
Prov. iii. 34. 

27. For thou wilt save the afflicted, or, lowly, 
people ; hut wilt bring down high looks. 

" God resisteth the proud," saith an Apostle, 
"and giveth grace unto the humble: James iv. 0. 
And, indeed, what is the covenant of grace, but a 
covenant to humble pride, and to exalt humility ; 
what was it, but the humility of Christ, that sub- 
dued the pride of Satan ; and on what does the 
salvation of every man depend, but on the issue 
of the contest between these two principles in his 
lieart? 



Commentary on Psalm xvjii. 31 

28. For thou wilt, or, dost, light my candle, or, 
lamp; the Lord my God will, or does, enlighten 
my darkness. 

An instance of God's favour towards the lowly 
and afflicted was the salvation vouchsafed to the 
suffering Jesus, who, like David, after much tribu- 
lation and persecution, under which he suuk for a 
time, even so low as to the grave itself, was exalted 
to glory and honour. This change of condition is 
set forth by that of " a lamp," from a state of extinc- 
tion to one of illumination, darkness being a well- 
known emblem of sorrow and death, as light is the 
established symbol of life and joy. Remarkable 
are the words of the Chaldee paraphrast upon this 
verse, cited by Dr. Hammond — M Because thou 
shalt enlighten the lamp of Israel, which is put out 
in the captivity, for thou art the author of the light 
of Israel ; the Lord my God shall lead me out of 
darkness into light, and shall make me see the con- 
solation of the age which shall come to the just." 

29. For by thee I have run through, or, broken, 
a troop ; and by my God have I leaped over a wall. 

Through the power of his divinity, the Captain of 
our salvation vanquished the host of darkness, and 
escaped from the sepulchre, notwithstanding all 
their precautions to confine him there. Vain is 
every effort, by whomsoever it is made, against the 
counsels of Omnipotence. And let us reflect, for 
our comfort, that they who could not prevent the 
resurrection of Christ, cannot detain the soul of a 
Christian in sin, or his body in the grave. 

30. As for God, his way is perfect ; the word of 
the Lord is tried: he is a buckler to all those that 
trust in him. 

The " way" of God is the course of his proceedings 
with men, and its " perfection" consists in the equity 
of those proceedings; the promises made in "the 
word of Jehovah" to his servants, are '* tried" in 
times of affliction and persecution, as gold in the 



32 Commentary on Psalm xvni. 

fire, and found pure from any dross of deceit, or 
fallibility: be is ever a "shield" to protect those 
wbo " trust in bim," during tbeir stay bere, until 
be becomes their " exceeding great reward" here- 
after. All this he has been to the Head, in order 
that he may be all this to the members of the church. 

31. For who is God, save the Lord? Or, who is 
a rock, save our God? 

"Jehovah" alone is the "God," or covenanted 
Saviour, of his people; he is the only " rock," on 
which they may securely build their hope of heaven. 
Vain were the idols of the ancient world, Baal and 
Jupiter ; as vain are those of modern times, Plea- 
sure, Honour, and Profit. They cannot bestow 
content, or make their votaries happy below ; much 
less can they deliver from death, or open the ever- 
lasting doors above. 

32. It is God that girdeth me with strength, and 
maketh my way perfect. 

In this and the following verses are enumerated 
the gifts of God to the. spiritual warrior, whereby 
he is armed and prepared for the battle, after the 
example of his victorious leader. God invests him 
with " strength," or what the apostle calls " the 
spirit of might in the inner man," as the loins of a 
soldier are braced by the military girdle; whence 
that of St. Paul, " having your loins girt about with 
truth." He removes every thing that may impede 
his progress, until he has accomplished his warfare, 
and finished his course in righteousness, which seems 
to be what is meant by " making his way perfect." 

33. He maketh my feet like hinds' feet, and set- 
teth me upon my high places. 

He endueth the affections, which are the feet of 
the soul, with vigour and agility, to run the way of 
his commandments, to surmount every obstacle, and, 
with an activity like that of the swift hart, or the 
bounding roe, to conquer the steep ascent of the 
everlasting hills, and gain the summit of the heavenly 



Commentary on Psalm XVIII. 33 

fountain. St. Paul tells us how the feet must be 
shod, for this purpose, namely, " with the prepara- 
tion of the Gospel of peace." 

34. He teacheth my hands to war, so that a bow 
of steel is broken by mine arms. 

He communicates a wisdom and a power which 
nothing can withstand, instructing- and enabling the 
combatant to overcome in the conflict, to seize and 
render useless the weapons of the adversary. St. 
Paul puts into the Christian warrior's hand, " the 
sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." 

35. Thou hast also given me the shield of thy sal- 
vation : and thy right hand hath holden me up, and 
thy gentleness, or, thy afflictions, have made me 
great. 

The salvation of God is a defence against all 
temptations, to such as believe in it ; whence St. 
Paul styles this piece of armour, the shield of 
Faith, " wherewith," says he, " ye may be able 
to quench all the fiery darts of the devil." The 

right hand" of God must support and sustain us 
at all times ; and the wholesome discipline of the 
Christian camp, the chastisements and corrections 
of our heavenly Father, must train us up to true 
greatness, and prepare us for the kingdom of hea- 
ven. The soldiers, like their great Leader, must 
be "made perfect through sufferings." 

36. Thou hast enlarged my steps under me, that, 
or, and, my feet did not slip. 

In other words, God had opened a free course 
for him to victory and triumph, and had also endued 
him with strength to run that course ; thus removing 
the two mischievous effects of sin, which not only 
precluded the way to heaven, but deprived us of 
the ability to travel in it. 

37. I have pursued mine enemies, and overtaken 
them ; neither did 1 turn again till they were co/i- 
sumed. 38. I have wounded them that they were 
not able to rise: they are fallen under my feet. 

C 5 



34 Commentary on Psalm XVIII, 

If we suppose David in his conquests to Lave pre- 
figured victorious Messiah, then have we, in these 
and the subsequent verses, a sublime description of 
that vengeance which Jesus, after his resurrection 
and ascension, inflicted on his hardened and impe- 
nitent enemies. His wrath "pursued" and "over- 
took" them, in the day of visitation ; nor did it 
return, till, like a devouring fire, it had " consumed'* 
the prey. The Jews were cast down, " not able to 
rise," or lift up themselves as a people, being crush- 
ed under the feet of the once-despised and insulted 
Nazarene. Let us reflect upon the impotence of 
our spiritual adversaries, when Jesus declares war 
against them; and let us beseech him to conquer 
them in us, as he has conquered them for us. 

39. For thou hast girded me with strength unto 
the hat tie ; thou hast subdued under me those that 
rose up against me. 40. Thou hast also given me 
the necks of mine enemies; that I might destroy 
them that hate me. 

With the almighty power of the Godhead was 
Jesus invested, by which all enemies were subdued 
unto him; the stiff "necks" of his crucifiers were 
bowed under him, and utter destruction became the 
portion of those who hated him, and had " sent after 
him, saying, We will not have this man to reign 
over us." So gird us thy soldiers and servants, O 
Lord Jesu, to the battle, and subdue under us, by 
the power of thy grace, those that rise up against 
us, whether they be our own corrupt desires, or 
the malicious spirits of darkness ; so give us, like 
another Joshua, the " necks" of these our enemies, 
that we may destroy them that hate, and would 
destroy us. 

41. They cried, but there was none to save them; 
even unto the Lord, but he answered them not, 

IS ever was there a more just and lively portrait of 
the lamentable and desperate state of the Jews, when 
their calamities came upon them. "They cried. 



Commentary on Psalm xviii. 35 

" but — none to save !" They Lad rejected him who 
alone could save, and who was now about to destroy 
them. They cried to Jehovah, and thought them- 
selves still his favorite nation ; but Jehovah and 
Jesus were one ; so that after putting the latter from 
them, they could not retain the former on their side. 
ff He answered them not !" It was too late to 
knock, when the door was shut ; too late to cry for 
mercy, when it was the time of justice. Let us 
knock, while yet the door may be opened; and not 
begin to pray, when prayer shall be no longer heard. 

42. Then did I beat them small as the dust before 
the wind: I did cast them out as the dirt in the 
streets. 

The nature of that Judgment which was executed 
upon the Jews, cannot be more accurately delineated, 
than by the two images here made use of. They 
were broken in pieces and dispersed over the face of 
the earth by the breath of God's displeasure, like 
" dust before the wind ; and as dirt in the streets^ 
they were cast out," to be trodden under foot by all 
nations. O that every nation would so consider, as 
to avoid their crime and their punishment ! 

43. Thou hast delivered me from the strivings of 
the people, and thou hast made me the head of the 
heathen : a people whom I have not known shall 
serve me. 

If David was delivered from the strivings of the 
people ; if the adjacent heathen nations were added 
to his kingdom, and a " people, whom he had not 
known, served him how much more was this the 
case of the Son of David, when he was " delivered," 
by his resurection, from the power of all his ene- 
mies ; when he was made " head of the heathen," 
of whom, after their conversion, his church was, and 
to this day is, composed; and when, instead of the 
rejected Jews, a people, to whom before he had 
not been known, became his servants ! 

44. As soon as they hear of me, they shall obey 
me : the strangers shall submit themselves unto me, 

c 6 



36 Commentary on Psalm XV III. 

45. The strangers shall fade away, and be afraid 
out of their close places, 

" As sood as they hear of me, they shall obey me 
hereby is intimated the readiness with which the Gen- 
tiles should flow into the church, upon the preaching 
of the Gospel to them, when the Jews, after having 
so long and so often heard it, had nailed Christ to the 
cross, and driven the apostles out from among them. 
" The strangers shall submit themselves unto me ;" 
the nations who were " aliens from the commonwealth 
of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise," 
either cordially submitted to the sceptre of Christ, or 
at least dissembled their hostility, and yielded a 
feigned submission (for so the word t^PD sometimes 
signifies) ; " the strangers shall fade away that is, 
such of them as set themselves against me, shall find 
their strength blasted and withered as a leaf in au- 
tumn, and shall fall at the sound of my name and my 
victories ; " they shall be afraid out of their close 
places ;" or rather, " they shall come trembling from 
their strong holds," as places not able to protect them, 
and therefore they will sue for peace. Such seems 
to be the import of these two verses, which there- 
fore denote the conquest of Messiah to have been 
every way complete. And accordingly, in the re- 
maining part of the Psalm, the church, through 
Christ her Head, blesseth Jehovah for the same. 

46. The Lord liveth : and blessed be my rock : 
and let the God of my salvation be exalted. 47. 
It is God that avengeth me, arid subdueth the 
people under me. 48. He delivereth me from mine 
enemies : yea, thou liftest me up above those that 
rise up against me : thou hast delivered me from, 
the violent man. 

In other words, " And now, the Lord God omni- 
potent liveth and reigneth, for ever blessed and ex- 
alted, as the God of salvation : by whom I am aveng- 
ed of those who persecuted me, and am advauced to 
empire ; my enemies are fallen, and my throne is es- 



Commentary on Psalm xviii. 37 



tablished." Thus we learn to trust in Jehovah with- 
out fear, when our enemies are victorious, and to 
glorify him without reserve, when we are so. 

49. Therefore will I give thanks unto thee, O 
Lord, among the heathen, and sing praises unto thy 
name. 

Remarkable is the manner in which St. Paul cites 
i this verse, Rom. xv. 9. The context runs thus : 
f* Now I say, that Jesus Christ was a minister of the 
circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the 
promises made unto the fathers : and that the Gen- 
tiles might glorify God for his mercy, as it is written, 
"For this cause I will confess to thee among the Gen- 
tiles, and sing unto thy name." This verse is by the 
apostle produced as a proof, that the Gentiles were 
one day to glorify God, for the mercy vouchsafed 
them by Jesus Christ. But, according to the letter 
o'f the passage, king David only says, that he will 
give " thanks unto God among the heathen," on ac- 
count of his own deliverance, and exaltation to the 
throne of Israel ; for upon that occasion we know 
that he composed and sung the Psalm. This cita- 
tion brought by St. Paul, cannot therefore be to the 
purpose for which it is brought, unless the Psalm 
have a double sense ; unless God be glorified in it 
for the victory and inthronization of Christ, as well as 
for those of David ; and this cannot be, unless the 
same words, which literally celebrate the one, do like- 
wise prophetically celebrate the other; unless David 
be a figure of Christ, and speak in his person, and in 
that of his body the church. While this Psalm is 
used as a Christian hymn, in the Gentile Christian 
church, David still continues, as he foresaw he should 
do, if to give thanks unto Jehovah, to glorify God 
among the Gentiles, for the mercies of redemption, 
and to " sing praises unto his name 

* " This verse is applied in Rom. xv. 9, to the calling of 
the Gentiles unto the faith of Christ, and praise unto God 
therefore. By which we are taught, that of Christ and las 
kingdom this Psalm is chiefly intended." Ainsworth. 



38 Commentary on Psalm XIX. 



50. Great deliverance giveth he to his King; 
and showeth mercy to his Anointed, to David, and 
to his seed for evermore. 

" Great deliverance giveth he to Lis King- ; 
to King David, in saving- him from Saul, and his 
other temporal enemies, and seating him on the 
earthly throne of Israel ; to King Messiah, in res- 
cuing him from death and the grave, and exalting him 
to an heavenly throne, as head of the church : " and 
showeth mercy to his anointed to him who was 
anointed outwardly, and in a figure, with oil ; and to 
him who was anointed inwardly, and in truth, with 
the Holy Ghost and with power : " to David, and 
". to his seed for evermore;" to the literal David, 
and to his royal progeny, of whom, according to the 
flesh, Christ came; and to Christ himself, the spi- 
ritual David, the beloved of God, with all those who, 
through faith, become his children, the sons of God, 
and heirs of eternal life. 



PSALM XIX. 

One of the Proper Psalms appointed for 
Christmas Day. 

ARGUMENT. 

In the former part of this beautiful Psalm, ver. 1 — 6, 
the heavens are represented as the instructors of 
mankind ; the subject, the universality, and the 
manner of their instructions are pointed out; the 
glory, beauty, and powerful effects of the solar 
light are described. The latter part of the Psalm, 
7 — 14. contains an encomium on the word of God, 
in which its properties are enumerated; and a 
prayer of the Psalmist for pardoning- and restrain- 



Commentary on Psalm XIX. 39 



ing grace, and for the acceptance of these and all 
other his devotions and meditations. From a 
citation which St. Paul hath made of the 4th 
verse, it appears, that, in the exposition, we are 
to raise our thoughts from things natural to things 
spiritual ; we are to contemplate the publication 
of the Gospel, the manifestation of the Light of 
Life, the Sun of Righteousness, and the efficacy 
of evangelical doctrine. In this view the ancients 
have considered the Psalm, and the Church hath 
therefore appointed it to be read on Christmas- 
day. 

1. The heavens declare the glory of God, and the 
firmament sheweth his handy work, 

Cnder the name of " heaven;' or " the heavens/' 
is comprehended that fluid mixture of light and air 
which is every where diffused about us ; and to the 
influence of which are owing all the beauty and fruit- 
fulness of the earth, all vegetable and animal life, 
and the various kinds of motion throughout the 
system of nature. By their manifold and beneficial 
operations therefore, as well as by their beauty and 
magnificence, " the heavens declare the glory of 
God they point Him out to us, who, in Scripture 
language, is styled (i the glory of God ;" by whom 
themselves and all other things were made, and are 
upholden ; and who is the author of ever} grace and 
blessing to the sons of men : " the firmament," or 
expansion of the celestial elements, wherever it ex- 
tends, '• sheweth his handywork," not only as the 
Creator, but likewise as the Redeemer of the 
world. And thus do the heavens afford inexhaustible 
matter for contemplation and devotion, to the phi- 
losopher and to the Christian. 

2. Day unto day uttereth speech r and night unto 
night sheweth knowledge* 



40 Commentary on Psalm XI3L 

The labours of these our instructors know no in- 
termission, but they continue incessantly to lecture 
us in the science of divine wisdom. There is one 
glory of the sun, which shines forth by day; and 
there are other glories of the moon and of the stars, 
which become visible by night. And because day 
and night interchangeably divide the world between 
them, they are therefore represented as transmitting 
in succession, each to other, the task enjoined them, 
like the two parts of a choir, chanting forth alter- 
nately the praises of God. How does inanimate 
nature reproach us with our indolence and indevo- 
tion ! 

3. There is no speech nor language where their 
voice is not heard. 

Our translators, by the words inserted in a dif- 
ferent character, have declared the sense of this pas- 
sage to be, that there is no nation or language, whi- 
ther the instruction diffused by the heavens doth 
not reach. But as the same thought is so fully ex- 
pressed in the next verse, " Their sound is gone 
out," &c. it seems most advisable to adhere to the 
original, which runs literally thus : " No speech, no 
words, their voice is not heard that is, although 
the heavens are thus appointed to teach, yet it is not 
by articulate sounds that they do it ; they are not en- 
dowed, like man, with the faculty of speech ; but 
they address themselves to the mind of the intelligent 
beholder in another way, and that, when understood, 
a no less forcible way, the way of picture or repre- 
sentation. So manifold is the wisdom of God ; so 
various are the ways by which he communicates it to 
men. 

4. Their line is gone out through all the earth, 
and their words to the end of the world. 

The instruction which the heavens disperse abroad 
is universal as their substance, which extends itself 
in " lines," or rays, (t over all the earlh by this 



3 



Commentary on Psalm xix. 41 

means their " words," or rather, their " * significant 
actions" and operations, are every where present, 
even " to the ends of the world ;" and thereby they 
preach to all nations the power and wisdom, the 
mercy and loving kindness of the Lord. The 
apostles' commission was the same with that of the 
heavens : and St. Paul (Rom. x. 18.) has applied the 
natural images of this verse to the manifestation of 
the Light of Life, by the sermons of those who were 
sent forth for that purpose. He is speaking of those 
Jews who had not obeyed the Gospel. " But I say," 
argues he, " have they not heard ? Yes, verily, their 
sound went into all the earth, and their words unto 
the ends of the world." As if he had said, They 
must have heard, since the Apostles were commanded 
not to turn unto the Gentiles, till they had pub- 
lished their glad tidings throughout Judea ; but the 
knowledge of him is now become universal, and all 
flesh has seen the Glory of the Lord; the Light Di- 
vine, like that in the heavens, has visited the whole 
world, as the Prophet David foretold, in the xixth 
Psalm. The apostle cannot be supposed to have 
made use of this Scripture in a sense of accommoda- 
tion only, because he cites it among other texts which 
he produces merely as prophecies. And if such be 
its meaning, if the heavens thus declare the Glory of 
God, and this is the great lesson they are incessantly 
teaching; what other language do they speak than 
that their Lord is the representative of ours, the 
bright ruler in the natural world of the more glorious 
one in the spiritual, their sun of the " Sun of Righ- 
teousness V But of this the following verses will 
lead us to speak more particularly. 

5. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, 
which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, 
and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race, 

* DH^D— The verb V?D (whence ^>ft words) is used for 
expressing the meaning by signs. It has this sense, Prov. tj. 
13. VZli, ?7)D> speaking with his foot, 



42 Commentary on Psalm XIX. 



In the centre of the heavens there is a tent pitched 
by the Creator for the residence of that most glo- 
rious of inanimate substances, the solar light; from 
thence it issues with the beauty of a bridegroom, and 
the vigour of a champion, to run its course, and per- 
form its operations. A tabernacle, in like manner, 
was prepared for him, who saith of himself, "1 am 
" the light of the world :" John viii. 12. And as 
the light of the sun goes out in the morning with in- 
conceivable activity, new and youthful itself, and 
communicating life and gaiety to all things around it, 
like a bridegroom, in the marriage-garment, from his 
chamber to his nuptials ; so, at his incarnation, did 
the Light Divine, the promised bridegroom, visit his 
church, being clad himself, and clothing her, with 
that robe of righteousness which is styled, in holy 
Scripture, the marriage-garment; and the joy which 
his presence administered, was, like the benefits of 
it, universal. And as the material light is always 
ready to run its heavenly race, daily issuing forth 
with renewed vigour, like an invincible champion 
still fresh to labour ; so likewise did HE rejoice to 
run his glorious race : he excelled in strength, and 
his Works were great and marvellous ; he triumphed 
over the powers of darkness ; he shed abroad on all 
sides his bright beams upon his church ; he became 
her deliverer, her protector and support; and showed 
himself able in every respect to accomplish for her 
the mighty task he had undertaken. What a mar- 
vellous instrument of the Most High is the sun at his 
rising, considered in this view ! 

6. His going forth is from the end of heaven, and 
his circuit unto the ends of it ; and there is nothing 
hid from the heat thereof. 

The light diffused on every side from its fountain, 
extendeth to the extremities of heaven, filling the 
whole circle of creation, penetrating even to the in- 
most substances of grosser bodies, and acting in and 
through all other matter, as the general cause of life 



Commentary on Psalm XIX. 



43 



and motion. Thus unbounded and efficacious, was 
the influence of the Sun of Righteousness, when he 
sent out his word, enlightening and enlivening all 
things by the glory of his grace. His celestial rays^ 
like those of the sun, took their circuit round the 
earth ; they went forth out of Judea into all parts of 
the habitable world, and there was no corner of it so 
remote as to be without the reach of their penetrating 
and healing power. " The Lord gave the word, 
great was the company of those that published it :" 
Ps. Ixviii. 11. It was the express declaration of our 
Saviour himself, " This Gospel of the kingdom shall 
be preached in all the world, for a witness unto all 
nations, and then shall the end come :" Matt xxiv* 
14. And St. Paul affirms, that the Gospel was 
If come unto all the world, and had been preached 
to every creature under heaven:" Col. i. 6. and 28. 
The prophet, therefore, having thus foretold the 
mission of the apostles, and the success of their mi- 
nistry, proceeds, in the next place, to describe their 
" doctrine ;" so that what follows is a fine encomium 
upon the Gospel written with all the simplicity pe- 
culiar to the sacred language, and in a strain far sur» 
passing the utmost efforts of human eloquence. 

7. The law, or doctrine of the Lord is perfect? 
converting, or, restoring, the soul ; the testimony of 
the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. 

The word of God, in this and the following verses, 
has several most valuable properties ascribed to it. 
It is perfectly well adapted, in every particular, to 
P convert," to restore, to bring back " the soul" from 
error to truth, from sin to righteousness, from 
sickness to health, from death to life ; as it convinces 
of sin, it holds forth a Saviour; it is a means of grace 
and a rule of conduct. It giveth wisdom, and by 
wisdom stability, to those who might otherwise 
through ignorance and weakness, be easily deceived 
and led astray ; " it is sure," certain and infallible in 



44 Commentary on Psalm xix. 



its directions and informations, " making" wise the 
simple." 

8. The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing 
the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure, 
enlightening the eyes. 

To those who study the righteousness of God 
therein communicated to man, it becometh a never- 
failing source of consolation and holy joy ; the con- 
science of the reader is cleansed by the blood, and 
rectified by the Spirit, of Christ ; and such a con- 
science is a continual feast : " the statutes of the 
Lord are right, rejoicing the heart." The divine 
word resembleth the light in its brightness and pu- 
rity, by which are unveiled and manifested to the 
eyes of the understanding, the wonderful works and 
dispensations of God, the state of man, the nature of 
sin, the way of salvation, the joys of heaven, and the 
pains of hell : " the commandment of the Lord is 
pure, enlightening the eyes." 

9. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring for 
ever : the judgments of the Lord are true and righ- 
teous altogether, 

" The fear of the Lord," which restrains from 
transgressing that law by which it is bred in the 
heart, is in its effect a preservative of mental purity, 
and in the duration both of its effect and its reward 
eternal; it " endureth for ever." " The judgments 
of the Lord are 3 ' not, like those of men, oftentimes 
wrong and unjust, but all his determinations in his 
word are " truth and righteousness united" in per- 
fection. 

10. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, 
than much fine gold ; sweeter also than honey, and 
the honey-comb. 

What wonder is it, that this converting, instruct- 
ing, exhilarating, enlightening, eternal, true, and 
righteous word should be declared preferable to the 
riches of eastern kings, and sweeter to the soul of 
the pious believer, than the sweetest thing we know 

/ 



Commentary on Psalm XIX. 45 

of is to the bodily taste ? How ready we are to ac- 
knowledge all this ! Yet the next hour, perhaps, we 
part with the true riches to obtain the earthly mam- 
mon, and barter away the joys of the Spirit for the 
gratifications of sense ! Lord, give us affections to- 
wards thy word in some measure proportioned to its 
excellence ; for we can never love too much what we 
can never admire enough. 

11. Moreover by them is thy servant warned: 
and in keeping them there is great reward. 

The Psalmist here bears his own testimony to the 
character above given of the divine word ; as if he 
had said, The several parts of this perfect law, here- 
after to be published to the whole race of mankind, 
have been all along my great instructors, and the 
only source of all the knowledge to which thy servant 
hath attained ; and I am fully assured, that the blessed 
fruit of them, when they are duly observed, and have 
their proper effect is exceeding glorious, even eter- 
nal life. 

12. Who can understand his errors ? Cleanse thou 
me from secret faults. 

The perfection and spirituality of God's law render 
it almost impossible for a fallen son of Adam even to 
know all the innumerable instances of his trangress- 
ing it. Add to which, that false principles and inve- 
terate prejudices make us regard many things as in- 
nocent, and some things as laudable, which, in the 
eye of heaven, are far otherwise. Self-examination 
is a duty which few practise as they ought to do : 
and he who practises it best, will always have reason 
to conclude his particular confessions with this gene- 
ral petition. " Cleanse thou me from secret faults !" 

13. Keepback thy servant also from presumptuous 
sins ; let them not have dominion over me ; then shall 
I be upright, and 1 shall be innocent from the great 
transgression. 

In the preceding verse, David had implored God's 
pardoning grace, to cleanse him from the secret sins 



46 Commentary, on Psalm xix. 

of ignorance and infirmity: in this he begs his re- 
straining grace, to keep him back from presump- 
tuous sins, or sins committed knowingly, deliberately, 
and with a high hand against the convictions and 
the remonstrances of conscience: he prays that such 
sius might not " have dominion over hira," or that 
lie might not, by contracting evil habits, become the 
slave of an imperious lust, which might at length 
lead him onto i( the great transgression," torebellion, 
and final apostasy from God ; for he who would be 
innocent from the " great transgression," must be- 
ware of indulging himself in any. 

14. Let the words of my mouth, and the medita- 
tions of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O 
Lord, my strength and my Redeemer. 

The Prophet, having before solicited the justifica- 
tion of his person through grace concludes with a^ 
petition for the acceptance of all his otferingsV and 
more especially of these his meditations, at the han^s- 
of that Blessed One, whom he addresses as the au^ 
thor. of all good, and the deliverer from ail evil ; as 
the t{ strength" and the " Redeemer" of his people*. 

* If the reader shall have received any pleasure from pe- 
rusing the comment on the foregoing Psalm, especially the 
lirst part of it, he is to be informed, that he stands indebted 
on that account to a Discourse entitled, Christ the light 
of the world, published in the year 1750, by the late reverend 
Mr. Georgia Watson, for many years the dear companion 
and kind director of the author's studies ; in attending to 
whose agreeable and instructive conversation, he has often 
passed whole days together, and shall always have reason to 
number them among the best-spent days of his life; whose 
death he can never think of without lamenting it afresh ; and 
to whose memory he embraces, with pleasurej this opportunity 
f o pay the tribute of a grateful heart. 



Commentary on Psalm XXI. 



47 



PSALM XXI. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
A scension - day . 

ARGUMENT. 

This is one of the proper Psal ms which the church 
hath appointed to be used on Ascension-day, and 
wherein, i — 6. she celebrates the victory of her 
Redeemer, and the glory consequent thereupon : 
she prophesies,, 7. the stability of his kingdom, 
and, 8 — 12. the destruction of the enemies thereof ; 
concluding with a prayer for his final triumph and 
exaltation ; the celebration of which, with ever- 
lasting hallelujahs, will be her employment in 
heaven. 

1. The King shall joy in thy strength, O Lord, 
and in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice ! 

The joy . of Christ himself, after his victor}% is in 
the strength and salvation of Jehovah, manifested 
thereby. Such ought to be the joy of his disciples, 
when God hath enabled them to vanquish their ene- 
mies, either temporal or spiritual ; in which latter 
case, as they are called kings, and said to reign with 
Christ, so they are in duty bound to acknowledge 
that they reign by him : " He that giorietb," what- 
ever the occasion be, " let him glory in the Lord." 

2. Thoa hast given him his heart's desire, and 
hast not withholden the request of his lips. 

The desire of Christ's heart was his own resurrec- 
tion and exaltation, for the benefit of his church; 
and now he ever liveth to make " request with his- 



48 Commentary on Psalm XXI. 

lips," for the conversion and salvation of sinners. 
Such desires will be granted, and such requests will 
never be withholden. Let us be careful to frame 
ours, after that all-perfect model of divine love. 

3. For thou preventest him with the blessings of 
goodness : thou settest a crown of pure gold on his 
head. 

The Son of God could not be more ready to ask 
for the blessings of the divine goodness, than the Fa- 
ther was to give them : and his disposition is the same 
towards all his adopted sons. Christ, as king and 
priest, weareth a crown of glory, represented by the 
purest and most resplendent of metals, gold. He is 
pleased to esteem his saints, excelling in different 
virtues, as the rubies, the sapphires, and the eme- 
ralds, which grace and adorn that crown. Who would 
not be ambitious of obtaining a place therein ! 

4. He asked life of thee, and thou gavest it him, 
even length of days for ever and ever. 

The life, asked by Christ, was not a continuance 
in this valley of tears, but that new and eternal life 
consequent upon a resurrection from the dead. For 
thus his petition was granted in " length of days for 
ever and ever." " He died no more ; death had no 
more dominion over him." Whose disciples then 
are they that wish only to have their days prolonged 
upon the earth, forgetful of the life which is hid with 
Christ in God ? 

5. His glory is great in thy salvation : honour 
and majesty hast thou laid upon him. 

What tongue can express the " glory, honour, and 
majesty," with which the King of righteousness and 
peace was invested, upon his ascension ; when he 
took possession of the throne prepared for him, and 
received the homage of heaven and earth ! The sa- 
cred imagery in St. John's Revelation sets them be- 
fore our eyes in such a manner, that no one can read 
the description, whose heart will not burn within 



Commentary on Psalm XXI. 49 

bim, through impatient desire to behold them. See 
Rev. ch. iv. vii. xix. xxi. xxii. 

6. For thou hast made him most blessed, Heb. 
set him to be blessings*, for ever : thou hast made 
him exceeding glad with thy countenance. 

Christ, by his death and passion, having removed 
the curse, became the fountain of all blessings to his 
people, in time and eternity ; being himself the bless- 
ing promised to Abraham, and the object of the pa- 
triarchal benedictions. The joy communicated to 
the humanity of our Lord, from the divine nature, 
shall be shed abroad on all his saints when admitted 
to view the " countenance of God" in the face of 
Jesus Christ. Then they shall enter into M the joy 
of their Lord." 

7. For the King trusteth in the Lord, and 
through the mercy of the Most High he shall not he 
moved. 

The throne of Christ, as a man, was erected and 
established , by his trust and confidence in the Father, 
during his humiliation and passion. Faith in God, 
therefore, is the way that leadeth to honour and sta- 
bility. " Look at the generations of old, and see : 
did ever any trust in the Lord, and was confounded V 
Ecclus. ii. 10. 

8. Thine hand shall find out all thine enemies ; 
thy right hand shall find out those that hate thee. 

The same right hand of Jehovah is glorious in 
power to save his people, and to destroy his ene- 
mies; to convert the Gentiles, and to crush the 
Jews ; to exalt the faithful to heaven, and cast down 
the unbelieving to hell : neither is there any treason 
against the King of heaven, which shall not be 
dragged forth into the light, made manifest, judged; 
and condemned. Let thy hand, O Lord, be upon 
our sins to destroy them ; but upon us, to save us. 

* " Nam posuisti eum in secula benedicendum." Houbi- 
grant. Compare Gen. xii. 2. Bishop Lowtb, in Merrick's 
Annotations. 

D 



50 Commentary on Psalm xxi. 

9. Thou shalt make them as a fiery oven in the 
lime of thine anger : the Lord shall swallow them 
up in his wrath, and the fire shall devour them. 

" The time of God's anger" often begins in this 
life, especially towards the close of it, when an evil 
conscience within, like flame confined in an " oven," 
torments the sinner, as a prelude to punishments 
future and unknown, which the " wrath" of God is 
preparing to inflict on the incorrigible and impeni- 
tent. Let us so meditate on this sad scene, that we 
may have no part in it. 

10. Their fruit shalt thou destroy from the earth, 
and their seed from among the children of men. 

A day is coming, when all the " fruits" of sin, 
brought forth by sinners, in their words, their writ- 
ings, and their actions, shall be " destroyed;" yea, 
the tree itself, which had produced them, shall be 
rooted up, and cast into the fire. The " seed" and 
posterity of the wicked, if they continue in the way 
of their forefathers, will be punished like them. Let 
parents consider, that upon their principles and 
practices may depend the salvation or destruction of 
multitudes after them. The case of the Jews, daily 
before their eyes, should make them tremble. 

11. For they intended evil against thee; they 
imagined a mischievous device, which they are not 
able to perform. 

Vengeance came upon the Jews to the uttermost, 
because of their intended malice against Christ. 
They, like Joseph's brethren, " thought evil against 
him; 1 ' but " they were not able to perform it;" " for 
God meant it unto good to bring it to pass, as it is 
this day, to save much people alive:" Gen. 1. 20. 
So let all the designs of ungodly men against thy 
church, O Lord, through thy power of bringing 
good out of evil, turn to her advantage : and let all 
men be convinced, that no weapon formed against 
thee can prosper. 

12. Therefore shalt thou make them turn their 



Commentary on Psalm xxii. 51 

back, or, thou shalt set them as a butt, when thou 
shalt make ready thine arrows upon thy strings 
against the face of them. 

The judgments of God are called his " arrows," 
being sharp, swift, sure, and deadly. What a dread- 
ful situation, to be set as a mark, and " butt," at 
which these arrows are directed ! View Jerusalem 
encompassed by the Roman armies without, and torn 
to pieces by the animosity of desperate and bloody 
factions within. No farther commentary is requisite 
upon this verse. " Tremble, and repent," is the in- 
ference to be drawn by every Christian community 
under heaven, in which appear the symptoms of de- 
generacy and apostasy. 

13. Be thou exalted, Lord, in thine own strength ; 
so will we sing, and praise thy power. 

The church concludes with a joyful acclamation 
to her Redeemer, wishing for his " exaltation in his 
own strength," as God, who was to be abased in 
much weakness, as man. We still continue to wish 
and pray for his exaltation over sin, in the hearts of 
his people by grace, and finally over death, in their 
bodies, by his glorious power at the resurrection. 
The triumph over sin we sing in psalms, and hymns, 
and spiritual songs upon earth ; that over death, we 
shall praise with everlasting hallelujahs, in heaven. 



PSALM XXII. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Good Friday. 

ARGUMENT. 

This Psalm, which the church hath appointed to be 
used on Good Friday, as our Lord uttered the 
first verse of it when hanging on the cross, con- 
D 2 



52 Commentary on Psalm xxu. 

sisteth of two parts. The former, 1 — 21. treat- 
eth of the passion ; the latter, 22 — 31, celebrateth 
the resurrection of Jesus, with its effects. 1, 2. 
He complaineth of being forsaken ; 3 — 6. acknow- 
ledged the holiness of the Father, and pleadeth 
the former deliverances of the church : 6 — 8. de- 
scribed his humiliation, with the taunts and re- 
proaches of the Jews ; 9 — 11. expresseth his faith, 
and prayeth for help ; 12 — 18. particularizeth his 
sufferings ; 19 — 21. repeateth his supplications ; 
22 — 25. declareth his resolution to praise the Fa- 
ther for his deliverance, and exhorteth his church 
to do the same ; 26 — 31. prophesieth the conver- 
sion of the Gentile world to the faith and worship 
of the true God. 

1. My God, my God, ivhy hast thou forsaken me? 
why art thou so far from helping me, and from the 
words of my roaring ? 

Christ, the beloved Son of the Father, when hang- 
ing on the cross, complained in these words, that he 
was deprived, for a time, of the divine presence and 
comforting influence, while he suffered for our sins. 
Jf the master thus underwent the trial of a spiritual 
desertion, why doth the disciple think it strange, un- 
less the light of heaven shine continually upon his ta- 
bernacle? Let us comfort ourselves, in such circum- 
stances, with the thought, that we are thereby con- 
formed to the image of our dying Lord, that sun 
which set in a cloud, to arise without one. 

2. O my God, I cry in the day-time, but thou 
hear est not ; and in the night season, and am not 
silent. 

Even our Lord himself, as man, prayed, " that if 
it were possible the cup might pass from him 
but God had ordained otherwise, for his own glory, 
and for man's salvation. " Day and night," in pros- 



Commentary on Psalm XXI I. 53 

perity and adversity, living and dying, let us not be 
" silent," but cry for deliverance ; always remember- 
ing to add, as Christ did, "Nevertheless, not my will, 
but thine be done." Nor let any man be impatient 
for the return of his prayers, since every petition 
preferred even by the Son of God himself was not 
granted. 

3. But thou art holy, O thou that inhabited t the 
praises of Israel *'. 

Whatever befalleth the members of the church, 
the Head thereof here teacheth them to confess the 
justice and holiness of God in all his proceedings 
and to acknowledge, that whether he exaiteth or 
humbleth his people, he is to be praised and glori- 
fied by them. 

4. Our fathers trusted in thee : they trusted and 
thou didst deliver them. 

Trust" in God is the way to " deliverance," and 
the former instances of the divine favour are so many 
arguments why we should hope for the same ; but 
it may not always be vouchsafed, when we expect it. 
The patriarchs and Israelites of old were often saved 
from their enemies: the holy Jesus is left to languish 
and expire under the malice of his. God knows 
what is proper for him to do, and for us to suffer ; 
we know neither. This consideration is an anchor 
for the afflicted soul, sure and stedfast. 

5. They cried unto thee, and were delivered: they 
trusted in thee, and were not confounded. 

No argument is of more force with God, than that 
which is founded upon an appeal to his darling at- 
tribute of mercy, and to the manifestation of it for- 
merly made to persons in distress ; for which reason 
it is here repeated, and dwelt upon. They who 
would obtain grace to help, in time of need, must 
" cry" as well as " trust." The 84 prayer of faith" 

* Or, perhaps, as bishop Lowth renders it, " Thou tbat 
inhabitest btf'itCP JfT^ATb the irradiations, the glory of Is- 
rael." See Merrick's Annotations on the Psalms, p. 43. 
D 3 



54 Commentary on Psalm XX II. 

is mighty with God, and (if we may use the expres- 
sion) overcometh the Omnipotent. 

6. But I am a worm, and no man ; a reproach of 
men, and despised by the people. 

He who spareth all other men, spared not his own 
Son ; he spared not him, that he might spare them. 
The Redeemer of the world scrupleth not to compare 
himself, in his state of humiliation, to the lowest 
reptile which his own hand had formed, a " worm," 
humble, silent, innocent, overlooked, oppressed, and 
trodden under foot. Let the sight of this reptile 
teach us humility. 

7, 8. All they that see me, laugh me to scorn : 
they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, 
He trusted on the Lord, that he ivould deliver him : 
let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him. 

This was literally fulfilled, when Messiah hung 
upon the cross, and the priests and elders used the 
very words that had been put into their mouths, by 
the spirit of prophecy, so long before. Matt, xxvii. 
41 — 43. " The chief priests mocking him, with 
the scribes and elders, said, He trusted in God ; 
let him deliver him now, if he will have him." O 
the wisdom and foreknowledge of God; the infa- 
tuation and blindness of man ! The same are too 
often the sentiments of those who live in times, 
when the church and her righteous cause, with their 
advocates, are under the cloud of persecution, and 
seem to sink beneath the displeasure of the powers 
of the world. But such do not believe, or do not 
consider, that, in the Christian economy, death is 
followed by a resurrection, when it will appear, that 
God forsaketh not them that are his, but they are pre- 
served for ever. 

9, 10. But thou art he that took me out of the 
womb ; thou didst make me hope, when 1 was upon 
my mother s breasts. I was cast upon thee from the 
womb : thou art my God from my mothers belly. 

This was eminently the case of Christ, who was 



Commentary on Psalm XX n. 55 

the Son of God in a sense in which no other man 
ever was. But in him we are all children of God 
by adoption ; we are all in the hands of a gracious 
Providence from the womb ; and into those hands 
must we commend ourselves, when about to depart 
hence. To whom else, then, should we have re- 
course, for support and consolation, in the day of 
calamity and sorrow. 

11. Be not far from me, for trouble is near; for 
there is none to help me. 

From the foregoing considerations, namely, from 
the holiness of God, ver. 3. from the salvation vouch- 
safed to the people of old time, ver. 4, 5. from the 
low estate to which Messiah was reduced, ver. 6,7, 8. 
and from the watchful care of the Father over him, 
since his miraculous birth, ver. 9, 10. from all these 
considerations, he enforceth his petition for help, dur- 
ing his unparalleled sufferings, " when all forsook 
him, and fled." Let us treasure up these things 
in our hearts, against the hour when " trouble shall 
be near, and there shall be none to help when all 
shall forsake us, but God, our consciences, and our 
prayers. 

12, 13. Many bulls have compassed me : strong 
bulls of Bashan have beset me round. They gaped 
upon me with their mouths, as a ravening and a roar- 
ing lion. 

From the 11th verse to the 19th the sufferings of 
the holy Jesus are described in terms partly figura- 
tive, and partly literal. A lamb, in the midst of 
wild ** bulls and lions," is a very lively representation 
of his meekness and innocence, and of the noise and 
fury of his implacable enemies. " Bashan" was a 
fertile country, Numb, xxxii. 4. and the cattle there 
fed were fat and " strong." Deut. xxxii. 15. Like 
them, the Jews, in that good land, " waxed fat, and 
kicked," grew proud and rebelled;" ' ' forsook God 
that made them, and lightly esteemed the rock of 
their salvation." Let both communities and indi- 
d4 



56 Commentary on Psalm XX n. 

viduals, when blessed with peace, plenty, and pro- 
sperity in the world, take sometimes into considera- 
tion this flagrant instance of their being abused ; with 
the final consequence of such abuse. 

14,15. I am poured out like water, and all my 
bones are out of joint, or, sundered : my heart is 
like wax, it is melted in the ?nidst of my bowels. My 
strength is dried up like a potsherd^ and my tongue 
cleaveth to my jaws ; and thou hast brought me into 
the dust of death. 

For our sakes Christ yielded himself, like 41 water," 
without resistance, to the violence of his enemies ; 
suffering his " bones," in which consisteth the 
strength of the frame, to be distended and dislocated 
upon the cross ; while, by reason of the fire from 
above, to the burning heat of which this paschal 
Lamb was exposed, his heart dissolved and melted 
away. The intenseness of his passion drying up all 
the fluids, brought on a thirst, tormenting beyond ex- 
pression ; and, at last, laid him low in the grave. 
Never, blessed Lord, was love like unto thy love ! 
Never was sorrow like unto thy sorrow ! Thy spouse 
and body mystical, the church, is often, in a degree, 
conformed unto thee; and as thou wert, so is she in 
this world. 

16. For dogs have compassed me : the assembly of 
the wicked have enclosed me : they pierced my hands 
and my feet. 

Our Lord, who compared himself above, ver. 12. 
to a lamb in the midst of bulls and lions, here setteth 
himself forth again under the image of a hart or 
liind roused early in the morning of his mortal life, 
hunted and chased all the day, and in the evening 
pulled down to the ground, by those " who com- 
passed" and " enclosed" him, thirsting and cla-. 
mouring for his blood, crying, " Away with him, 
away with him ! crucify him, crucify him !" And 
the next step was, the " piercing his hands and his 
feet," by nailing them to the cross. How often, 



Commentary on Psalm XXII. 57 

O thou Preserver of men, in thy church, thy mi- 
nisters, and thy word, art thou thus compassed, and 
thus pierced ! 

17. 1 may tell all my bones : they look and stare 
upon me. 

The skin and flesh were distended, by the posture 
of the body on the cross, that the bones, as through 
a thin veil, became visible, and might be counted * ; 
and the holy Jesus, forsaken and stripped, naked 
and bleeding, was a spectacle to heaven and earth. 
Look unto him, and be ye saved, all ye ends of the 
world ! 

18. They part my garments among them, and cast 
lots upon my vesture. 

■* The soldiers, when they had crucified J ESUS, 
took his garments and made four parts, to every 
soldier a part, and also his coat ; now the coat was 
without seam, woven from the top throughout. 
They said therefore among themselves, Let us not 
rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be : that the 
Scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They 
parted my raiment among them, and, for my vesture 
they did cast losts." John xix. 23, 24. 

19. But be not thou far from me, O Lord : O my 
strength, haste thee to help me. 

The circumstances of the passion being thus re- 
lated, Christ resumes the prayer, with which the 
Psalm begins, and which is repeated, ver. 10, 11. 
The adversary had emptied his quiver, and spent all 
the venom of his malice ; Messiah therefore prayeth 
for a manifestation of the power and favour of Hea- 
ven on his side, in a joyful and glorious resurrection. 

* " Qui macilenti sunt, sic habent ossa prominentia, ut fa- 
cile omnia possinttactu secerni etnumerari. David, quatenus 
haec ei conveniunt, dicere hoc potuit de se fuga et molestiis 
emaciato. Sed Christus aptius ita loqui poterat, quod magis 
emaciatus esset, et corpore nudo atque in cruce distento ma- 
gis adparerent ossa." he Clerc, cited by Bishop Lowtb, in 
Merrick's Annotations. 

D5 



58 Commentary on Psalm xxn. 

And to a resurrection from the dead every man will 
find it necessary to look forward, for comfort. 

20, 21. Deliver my soul from the sword; my dar- 
ling* from the power of the dog. Save me from the 
lion's mouth : for thou hast heard me, or, and hear 
thou me, from the horns of the unicorns. 

The wrath of God was the " sword," which took 
vengeance on all men in their representative ; it was 
the " flaming sword," whick kept men out of Para- 
dise ; the sword, to which it was said, at the time of 
the passion — " Awake, O sword, against my shep- 
herd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the 
Lord of hosts : smite the shepherd, and the sheep 
shall be scattered :" Zech. xiii. 7. Matt. xxvi. 31. 
The ravening fury of the " dog," the " lion," and the 
*' unicorn," or the " oryx," a fierce and untameable 
creature of the stag kind, is made use of to describe the 
rage of the devil and his instruments, whether spiri- 
tual or corporeal. From all these Christ supplicates 
the Father for deliverance. How great need have 
we to supplicate for the same, through him ! 

22. I will declare thy name unto my brethren ; in 
the midst of the congregation will I praise thee. 

The former part of the Psalm we have seen to be 
prophetical of the passion. The strain now changes 
to an epinikion, or hymn of triumph, in the mouth of 
the Redeemer, celebrating his victory, and its happy 
consequences. This verse is cited by the apostle, 
Heb. ii. 11. " Both he thatsanctifieth, and they who 
are sanctified, are all of one; for which cause he is 
not ashamed to call them brethren, saying, I will de- 
clare thy name unto my brethren," &c. And accord- 
ingly, when the deliverance, so long wished, and so 
earnestly prayed for, was accomplished by the resur- 
rection of Jesus from the dead, he " declared the 

* Heb. WTTT' m V un itedene. " May it relate to anything 
more than the yVDY- the human nature united with the 
Divinity in the person of Christ? Quaere." Bishop Lowth, itt 
Merrick's Annotations. 

t 



Commentary on Psalm XX n. 59 

name of God," by his apostles, to all his S* bre- 
thren ; and caused the church to resound with in- 
cessant praises and hallelujahs ; all which are here 
represented as proceeding from the body, by and 
through him who is the head of that body, 

23. * Ye that fear the Lord, praise him; all ye 
the seed of Jacob, glorify him ; and fear him, all ye 
the seed of Israel. 

If Christ arose from the dead to declare salvation 
to his brethren, and to glorify God for the same, how 
diligent ought we to be in doing the former ; how de- 
lighted, in the performance of the latter ! Messiah 
first addressed himself to his ancient people, " the 
seed of Jacob," to whom the Gospel was first 
preached. How long, O Lord, holy and true, shall 
thy once highly favoured nation continue deaf to this 
gracious call of thine! " All ye seed of Jacob glorify 
him ; and fear him all ye seed of Israel." 

24. For he hath not despised nor abhorred the 
affliction of the afflicted; neither hath he hid his face 
from him ; but when he cried unto him, he heard. 

The great subjects of praise and thanksgiving, in 
the church., are the sufferings of the lowly and afflicted 
Jesus, and the acceptance of those sufferings by the 
Father, as a propitiation for the sins of the world ; 
which acceptance was testified by raising him from 
the dead : inasmuch as the discharge of the surety 
proved the payment of the debt. The poor and af- 
flicted brethren of Christ may take comfort from this 
verse ; for if they suffer in his spirit, they will be 
raised in his glory. 

25. My praise shall be of thee in the great con* 

* Bishop Lowth is of opinion, that this verse and the fol- 
lowing are the " song" of praise, which, in the verse preced- 
ing, the speaker says, he will utter " in the congregation." 
The introduction of it, as his lordship justly observes, gives 
a variety to the whole, and is highly poetical. Merrick's 
Annotations. 

d6 



60 Commentary on Psalm XX II. 

gregation: I will pay my vows before them that fear 
him. 

The vow of Christ was, to build and consecrate 
to Jehovah a spiritual temple, in which the spiritual 
sacrifices of prayer and praise should be continually 
offered. This vow he performed, after his resurrec- 
tion, by the hands of his apostles, and still continueth 
to perform, by those of his ministers, carrying on the 
work of edification in " the great congregation" of 
the Gentile Christian Church. The vows of Christ 
cannot fail of being performed. Happy are they 
whom he vouchsafeth to use, as his instruments, in 
the performance of them. 

26. The meek shall eat and be satisfied : they shall 
praise the Lord that seek him: your heart shall 
live for ever. 

A spiritual banquet is prepared in the church for 
the meek and lowly of heart ; the bread of life and 
the wine of salvation are set forth in the word and 
sacraments : and they that hunger and thirst after 
righteousness, shall be " satisfied" therewith : they, 
" who seek the Lord Jesus in his ordinances, ever 
find reason to " praise him ;" while nourished by 
these noble and heavenly viands, they live the life, 
and work the works of grace, proceeding still for- 
ward to glory ; when their " heart shall live for 
ever," in heaven. 

27. All the ends of the world shall remember, and 
turn unto the Lord : and all the kindreds of the na- 
tions shall worship before thee. 

The great truths of man's creation and fall, with 
the promise of a Redeemer to come, were " for- 
gotten" by the nations, after their apostasy from the 
true God, and the one true religion ; but were, as 
we may say, recalled to " their remembrance," by 
the sermons of the apostles, and the writings of 
Moses and the prophets, translated, and spread 
among them. By these they were converted to the 



Commentary on Psalm X x 1 1 . 61 



faith, and now compose the holy church universal 
throughout the world ; being the glorious proofs and 
fruits of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. 

28. For the kingdom is the Lord's ; and he is the 
governor among the nations. 

There is good reason why the nations should wor- 
ship Christ, and throw away their idols ; since in his 
hands, not in theirs, is the government of the world. 
Upon his ascension he was crowned King of kings, 
and Lord of lords ; he ruleth in the church by his 
Spirit ; and blessed are the hearts, that are his willing 
subjects in the day of his power. 

29. All they that he fat upon earth shall eat and 
worship : all they that go down to the dust shall bow 
before him : and none can keep alive his own soul. 

It was said above, ver. 26. " the meek" the poor, 
and lowly, " shall eat and be satisfied." It is here 
foretold, that the " fat ones of the earth," the great, 
the opulent, the flourishing, the nobles and princes 
of the world, should be called in to partake of the 
feast, and to " worship" God. Rich, as well as 
poor are invited * ; and the hour is coming, when 
all the race of Adam, as many as sleep in the " dust" 
of the earth, unable to raise themselves from thence, 
quickened and called forth by the voice of the Son 
of man, must " bow" the knee to king Messiah. 

* They are " invited' 7 but they do not so often accept the in- 
vitation. And it must be owned, that JHN *0t£H are generally 
mentioned in an unfavourable sense. Bishop Lowth is there- 
fore rather inclined to construe the words, as Mr. Fenwiek 
does ; all who are " fattened," lhat is, " fed" and " sustained 
by the earth.*' The expression then intimates the universality 
of the Gospel, which, the apostle says, " was preached to 
every creatlrl. a phrase of similar import. All who 
would partake the benefits of Christ's passion, must worship 
him as a Saviour, before they are called upon to adore him as 
a Judge. The bishop thinks, likewise, that the 29th verse 
should end with the words, " bow before him that the next 
words in the original should be read, as almost all the ancient 
versions seem to have read them, J"V>n J? ^5)31, and render- 
ed— u But my soul shall live— My seed shall serve hun/' &«. 



62 Commentary on Psalm xxn. 

30. A seed shall serve him: it shall be accounted 
to the Lord for a generation. 

The apostle informeth us, Rom. ix. 8. that " the 
" children of the promise are counted for the seed 
that is, the converts to be made, among the nations, 
by the preaching of the Gospel, according to the 
promise to Abraham ; these were to constitute the 
church and family of Christ, the " generation" of the 
faithful ; these were to take the place, and enjoy the 
privileges of the Jews, cut off because of their un- 
belief. Lord, enable us to serve thee all our lives, 
with a service acceptable to thee in Christ Jesus ; 
that at the resurrection of the just, we may be num- 
bered in the generation of thy children. 

31. They shall come, and shall declare his righte- 
ousness unto a people that shall be born, that he 
hath done this. 

The promised and expected race shall spring forth 
at the time appointed, and proclaim the " righte- 
ousness," which is of God by faith, to ages and gene- 
rations yet unborn ; who, hearing of that great work, 
which the Lord shall have wrought, for the salvation 
of men, will thereby be led to glorify him in the 
church, for the same to the end of the time. 

Rise, crown'd with light, imperial Salem, rise ; 
Exalt thy tow'ring head, and lift thy eyes. 
See a long race thy spacious courts adorn ; 
See future sons, and daughters yet unborn, 
In crowding ranks, on ev'ry side arise, 
Demanding life, impatient for the skies. 
See barb'rous nations at thy gates attend, 
Walk in thy light, and in thy temple bend. 

Messiah. 



Commentary on Psalm xxiv. 63 



PSALM XXIV. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Ascension-day. 

ARGUMENT. 

The plan of this Psalm, according to the letter of 
it, is beautifully delineated by bishop Lowth, in 
his xxviith lecture. The Ark of God is supposed 
to be moving, in a grand and solemn procession of 
the whole Israelitish nation, towards the place of 
its future residence, on mount Sion : see 1 Chron. 
xv. On ascending the mountain, the Psalm is 
sung, declaring, 1. 2. the sovereignty of Jehovah 
over all the earth ; describing, 3 — 6. what the 
character ought to be of that people whom he had 
more peculiarly selected, to serve him in the house 
where his glory was to dwell, and of which, 7 — 
10. it was now about to take possession. All this 
is by us to be applied to the Christian church, and 
the ascension of our Lord into heaven ; for which 
reason, the Psalm is one of those appointed to be 
used on Ascension-day. 

1. The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness there- 
of ; the world, and they that dwell therein. 

The God of Israel was Lord of the whole earth, 
by right of creation. The same Divine Person who 
created the world, hath since, in Christ, redeemed it; 
and it is his again, by that right also. But the 
church Christian is his, in a more peculiar manner, as 
the church of Israel formerly was. We are doubly 
bound to adore and to obey him. " It is he that 
hath made us and not we ourselves;" Psal. c. 2. 
and "we are not our own, being bought with a 



64 Commentary on Psalm xxiv. 

price 1 Cor. vi. 20. The inference is, " Let us 
glorify God in our bodies, and in our spirits, which 
are/' every way, " God's." 

2. For he hath founded it upon the seas, and es* 
tablished it upon the floods. 

The waters which, at the creation, and again at 
the deluge, overspread all things, being, by the 
power of God, driven down into the great deep, and 
there confined, the earth was, in a wonderful man- 
ner, constructed and established, as a circular arch, 
upon or over them. Let us often meditate on this 
noble subject for contemplation and devotion ; that 
we may learn whither we are to have recourse, when 
in danger of being overwhelmed by sins or sorrows. 

3. Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lo RD 
and who shall stand in his holy place ? 

The connexion seems to be this : If the Almighty 
Creator and Lord of all the earth has chosen us to be 
his peculiar people, to serve and worship him in his 
temple, upon the holy hill of Sion, whither the 
sacred symbol of his presence is now ascending, what 
manner of persons ought we to be ? The reasoning 
is exactly the same, as bishop Lowth observes, with 
that of Moses, in JDeut. x. 14—16. « Behold the 
heaven and the heaven of heavens is the Lord's thy 
God ; the earth also, with all that therein is. Only 
the Lord had a delight in thy fathers, to love them ; 
and he chose their seed after them, even you, above 
all people, as it is this day. Circumcise therefore 
the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiff- 
necked/' The argument applies, with additional 
force, to ourselves, as Christians. We compose a 
far more numerous and magnificent procession than 
that of the Israelites, when the church universal, 
with her spiritual services, attends our Lord, as it 
were, upon his ascension, in heart and mind ascending 
with him into the holy places not made with hands. 

4. He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart ; 
who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity , or, 



Commentary on Psalm xxiv. 65 



placed his trust in vain idols, or, in the creature, nor 
sworn deceitfully. 5. He shall receive the blessing 
from the Lord, and righteousness from the God of 
his salvation. 

No man can ascend into heaven through his own 
righteousness, but he who came down from heaven, 
and performed a perfect sinless obedience to the will 
of God. Sinners of old were purified, through faith 
in him that was to come, by typical offerings and ab- 
lutions, before they approached the sanctuary. We 
have been cleansed from our sins, and renewed unto 
holiness, by the blood of Christ, and the washing of 
the Holy Ghost. Thus we become his people : thus 
we "receive the blessing from the Lord, and righ- 
teousness from the God of our salvation." 

6. This is the generation of them that seek him, 
that seek thy face, O Jacob, or, O God of Jacob. 

Such ought the people to be who seek the presence 
of God, and approach to worship him in the sanc- 
tuary ; who celebrate the ascension of their Re- 
deemer, and hope, one day, to follow him into those 
happy mansions, which he is gone before to prepare 
for them. 

7. Lift up your heads, O ye gates ; and be ye lift 
up, ye everlasting doors ; and the King of Glory 
shall come in. 8. Who is the King of Glory ? The 
Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in bat- 
tle. 9, 10. The chorus is repeated. 

We must now form to ourselves an idea of the 
Lord of Glory, after his resurrection from the dead, 
making his entry into the eternal temple in heaven, 
as of old, by the symbol of his presence, he took 
possession of that figurative and temporary structure 
which once stood upon the hill of Sion. We are to 
conceive him gradually rising, from mount Olivet, 
into the air, taking the clouds for his chariot, and 
ascending up on high ; while some of the angels, like 
the Lsvites in procession, attendant on the trium- 
phant Messiah in the day of his power, demand 



66 Commentary on Psalm xxxi. 

that those everlasting gates and doors, hitherto shut 
and barred against the race of Adam, should be 
thrown open, for his admission into the realms of 
bliss. ie Lift up your heads, O ye gates ; and be ye 
lift up, ye everlasting doors ; and the King of Glory 
shall come in." On hearing this voice of jubilee 
and exultation from the earth, the abode of misery 
and sorrow, the rest of the angels, astonished at the 
thought of a MAN claiming a right of entrance into 
their happy regions, ask from within, like the Le- 
vites in the temple, ** Who is this King of Glory ?" 
To which question the attendant angels answer, in 
a strain of joy and triumph — and let the church of the 
redeemed answer with them — ** The Lord strong 
and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle :" the Lord 
Jesus, victorious over sin, death, and hell. There- 
fore we say, and with holy transport we repeat it, 
" Lift up your heads, O ye gates ; and be ye lift up, 
ye everlasting doors ; and the King of Glory shall 
come in." And if any ask, " Who is the King of 
Glory 1" to heaven and earth we proclaim aloud — 
"The Lord of Hosts :" all- conquering Messiah, 
Head over every creature, the Leader of the armies 
of Jehovah, " He is the King of Glory." Even 
so, Glory be to thee, O Lord Most High ! Amen. 
Hallelujah. 



PSALM XXXI. 

ARGUMENT. 

In this Psalm, ver. 5th of which was pronounced by 
our Lord, when expiring on the cross, we hear the 
true David, like his representative of old, 1 — 6. 
supplicating for deliverance ; 7, 8. rejoicing in the 
divine favour and assistance ; 9 — 13. describing 



Commentary on Psalm xxxi. 67 



his afflicted and forlorn state ; 14 — 18. returning 
again to his prayers; 19 — 22. celebrating the 
mercies of God to the children of Adam ; and, 23, 
24. exhorting his saints to courage and perse- 
verance, under their troubles in the world. 

1. In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust ; let me 
never he ashamed : deliver me in thy righteousness. 

God is faithful and just, to save those who, in 
time of trouble, renouncing all dependence on them- 
selves and the creature, " put their trust" only in his 
mercy. His honour is engaged by his promise, not 
to let such be " ashamed" of their confidence. 

2. Bow down thine ear to me, deliver me speedily: 
be thou my strong rock, for an house of defence to 
save me. 

The Christian, like his blessed Master, is " be- 
sieged" by many and powerful enemies, insomuch 
that, notwithstanding all human precautions, '* un- 
less Jehovah keep the city, the watchman waketh in 
vain." Who, in such circmmstances, would not 
pray for " speedy" deliverance ? 

3. For thou art my rock and my fortress : there- 
fore, for thy name's sake, lead me and guide me. 

God will be the "rock" and " fortress" of those 
who esteem him as sucb ; and, after having been so, 
through all the dangers and difficulties of life, he will 

of? ' 

"lead" and "guide'' them to the realms of peace 
and rest, for the sake of that " name" which implieth 
salvation. 

4. Pull me out of that net which they have laid 
privily for me : for thou art my strength. 

As David prayed for an escape from the secret 
conspiracies that were entered into against him, so 
did Christ pray for deliverance from the snares of 
death ; and so doth the Christian pray to be extri- 
cated from the toils both of sin and death. 

5. Into thine hand I commend my spirit : thou 
hast redeemed me, Lord, thou God of truth. 



68 Commentary on Psalm XXXI. 

David, in his distresses, might, by these words, 
express his resignation of himself and his affairs into 
the bands of God ; but it is certain, that Christ ac- 
tually did expire upon the cross, with the former part 
of this verse in his mouth : Luke xxiii. 46. Nor is 
there any impropriety in the application of the latter 
part to him ; since, as man, the surety and represen- 
tative of our nature, he was " redeemed" from the 
power of the enemy, by " the God of truth" accom- 
plishing his promises. 

6. J have hated them that regard lying vanities : 
but I trust in the Lord. 

They may hope for redemption, who so " trust in 
God," as to trust in nothing beside him : for all else 
is " vanity," and will deceive. 

7. I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy ; for 
thou hast considered my trouble^ and hast known 
my soul in adversities : 8. And hast not shut me up 
in the hand of the enemy ; thou hast set my feet in 
a large room. 

The considerations that make the soul " cheerful" 
in the hour of affliction, are, that God is merciful ; 
that as he is not ignorant, so neither is he unmindful, 
of our troubles; that he is a friend, who " knows" 
ns in adversity, no less than in prosperity ; that he 
hath not subjected us to the necessity of being over- 
come by our spiritual enemies ; but hath, " with the 
temptation, made a way for us to escape." 

9. Have mercy upon me, O Lord, for I am in 
trouble : mine eye is consumed with grief yea, my 
soul, or, animal frame, and my belly. 

Upon the strength of the foregoing considerations, 
supplication is here made for deliverance from trou- 
bles, which wasted the eyes with weeping, and ex- 
hausted the strength and vigour of the frame. Such 
were the troubles of David, and, more emphatically, 
those of Christ ; and sickness and sorrow will one 
day teach us all to use the same expressions. 

10. For my life is spent with grief, and my years 



Commentary on Psalm X X X I . 69 

with sighing : my strength faileth because of mine 
iniquity, and my bones are consumed. 

Do we not, in these words, hear the voice of the 
' c man of sorrows," suffering not indeed for his own 
" iniquity," but for ours, of which he frequently, in 
the Psalms, speaks as if it were his own ? If sin was 
punished in the innocent Lamb of God, let us not 
expect that it should be unpunished in us, unless we 
repent : and let our punishment never fail to remind 
us of our guilt. 

11. I was a reproach among all mine enemies, but 
especially among my neighbours, and a fear to mine 
acquaintance : they that did see me without, fled 
from me. 

These particulars were never more applicable to 
David, than they were to the Son of David, when 
his acquaintance, at beholding him reviled by his 
enemies, were terrified from attending him, and 
when " all the disciples forsook him, and fled." The 
same things are often too true of the faith and the 
church. They are true likewise of every man, when 
he suffers the dishonours of the last enemy, death ; 
when he is •" a fear" to his dearest friends, and they 
are obliged to forsake him. 

12. I am forgotten as a dead man out of mind; 
I am like a broken vessel. 

This was literally the case of Christ, when laid in 
the sepulchre, and esteemed no longer the object of 
hope by his friends, or of fear by his enemies. That 
he should be so " forgotten," while dead, is less 
wonderful, than that this should have happened since 
bis glorious resurrection and ascension into heaven. 

13. For I have heard the slander of many : fear 
was on every side, while they took counsel together 
against me; they devised to take away my life. 

The slander of Shimei, and the counsel of Ahitho- 
phel against king David, direct us to the slanders of 
the Jews, and the counsels of Judas and the sanhe- 
drim against the beloved Son of God, who, in his 



70 Commentary on Psalm XXXI. 

church, will be persecuted in like manner, by the 
ungodly, to the world's end. 

14. But I trusted in thee, O Lord : I said. Thou 
art my God. 15. My times are in thy hand; deliver 
me from the hand of mine enemies, and from them 
that persecute me, 16. Make thy face to shine upon 
thy servant : save me for thy mercies 1 sake. 

In all our afflictions, after the example of the ty- 
pical, and of the true David, we are to have recourse 
to the prayer of faith : we are to consider, that Je- 
hovah is our God and Saviour : that the times and 
the seasons of prosperity and adversity, of life and 
death, are in his hand ; and therefore on him we are 
to wait, till the day of mercy shall dawn, and the 
shadows fly away. 

17. Let me not be ashamed, O Lord, for I have 
called upon thee; let the wicked be ashamed, and let 
them be silent in the grave, 18. Let the lying lips 
be put to silence; which speak grievous things 
proudly and contemptuously against the righteous. 

A.hithophel, for his treason against David, and 
Judas for his treachery against Christ, felt the force 
of this prophetical imprecation, or prediction, which 
will also, one day, take its full effect, in the con- 
fusion of all impenitent calumniators and traitors. 

19. O how great is thy goodness, which thou hast 
laid up for them that fear thee ; which thou hast 
wrought for them that trust in thee ; before the sons 
of men! 

Peace of conscience, the comforts of the Spirit, 
and the hope of future glory, will teach the soul, 
even in the darkest night of affliction, to break forth 
into this exulting strain of gratitude and praise, for 
the blessings experienced by those who confess their 
Saviour before men. 

20. Thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy pre- 
sence from the pride, Heb. conspiracies, of man; 
thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the 
strife of tongues. 



Commentary on Psalm XXXI. 71 

In times of contention and persecution, there is a 
refuge for the faithful " in the tabernacle of David," 
which is the mystical body of Christ, inhabited by 
the presence of God. In this sacred " pavilion," 
they enjoy the pleasures of contemplation and devo- 
tion, regardless of the distant tumult and confusion 
of the world. 

21. Blessed be the Lord ; for lie hath shewed me 
marvellous kindness in a strong city. 

The man Christ, and the church, with him, like 
David of old, here rejoice in the protection and sav- 
ing power of God, in the same manner as in Isa. 
xxvi. I. " We have a strong city ; salvation will 
God appoint for walls and bulwarks." 

22. For I said in my haste, I am cut off from 
"before thine eyes ; nevertheless thou heardest the 
voice of my supplications, when I cried unto thee. 

Whoever shall consider the troubles of the be- 
loved Son of God, bereaved for a season of the light 
of heaven, only that it might afterwards arise upon 
him with the greater lustre, will be taught never tc. 
faint under the chastisement of the Lord ; since the 
darkness of the night argues the approaching dawn 
of the day. 

23. O love the Lord, all ye his saints ; for the 
Lord preserveth the faithful, and plentifully re~ 
wardeth the proud doer, 24. Be of good courage, 
and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope 
in the Lord. 

The exhortation is raised from the consideration of 
the deliverance of Christ, with the destruction of his 
enemies ; which ought to strengthen and comfort the 
hearts of believers, under all their afflictions here 
below; that so, after having suffered courageously 
with their Master, they may triumphantly enter into 
his joy and glory. 



72 Commentary on Psalm xxxii. 



PSALM XXXII. 

One of th^ Proper Psalms appointed for 
Ash- Wednesday. 

ARGUMENT. 

In this Psalm, which is the second of those stvled 
penitential, David, as a model of true repentance, 
1, 2. extolleth the blessedness of those whose sins 
are forgiven them ; 3, 4. describeth the torment 
endured by him, before he confessed his sin ; 
and, 5. the goodness of God in pardoning it, 
when confessed ; 6. he foretelleth that others, 
after his example, should obtain the like mercy ; 
7. declareth his hope aud confidence in his God ; 
who, 8. is introduced, promising wisdom and grace 
to the penitent ; 9, 10. sinners are warned against 

* obstinacy ; and, 11. the righteous exhorted to 
rejoice in God their Saviour. 

1. Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, 
whose sin is covered. 2. Blessed is the man unto 
whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity , and in whose 
spirit there is no guile. 

As the sick man is eloquent in the praise of health, 
so the sinner beginneth this his confession of sin 
with an encomium on righteousness, longing ear- 
nestly to be made a partaker of the evangelical 
" blessedness ;" to be delivered from the guilt and 
the power of sin ; to be pardoned and sanctified 
through faith which is in Christ Jesus. See Rom. 
iv. 6. 

3. When I kept in silence, my bones waxed old 
through my roaring all the day long. 



1 



Commentary on Psalm xxxii. 58 

In opposition to the blessedness above mentioned, 
the penitent now proceeds to declare his own 
wretched state, occasioned by his " keening silence," 
of not confessing his sin, which therefore rankled 
and festered inwardly, occasioning torment inex- 
pressible. The disorders of the mind, as well as 
those of the body, should be communicated to 
persons skilful in assuaging and removing them. 
Many might thereby be saved from the horrible crime 
of self-murder, which is generally committed in 
agonies of solitary remorse and despair. 

4. For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me : 
my moisture is turned into the drought of summer. 

Outward calamities, and inward pangs of con- 
science, are the strokes of God's hand, designed to 
humble the sinner, and lead him to confession ; and 
in the infliction of these, such severity is sometimes 
necessary, that the patient is brought to death's door, 
before a turn can be given to the disease: but the 
pain of a blow upon an ulcerated part, however ex- 
quisite, is well compensated for, if, by promoting a 
discharge, it effect a cure. 

5. I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine 
iniquity have I not hid : I said, I will confess my 
transgressions unto the Lord ; and thou forgavest 
the iniquity of my sin. 

What is this, but the Gospel itself — " If we con- 
fess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our 
sins 1 John i. 9. And thus it happened, in one 
case, to David, who had no sooner confessed his sin 
to the prophet Nathan, but an answer of peace was 
instantly vouchsafed — " The Lord hath put away 
thy sin :" 2 Sam. xii. 13. Were angels to descend 
from heaven, to comfort the dejected spirit of a sin- 
ner, they could say nothing more effectual for the 
purpose, than what is said in this verse of our Psalm. 
But practice will be the best comment upon it. 

G. For this shall every one that is godly pray unto 
thee in a time when thou may est be found: surely in 



74 Commentary on Psalm XXXII. 

the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh 
unto him. 

Encouraged, by this example and declaration of 
David, to hope for mercy, on confession of sin, it 
is here foretold, that humble penitents shall be led to 
make their prayer unto God in the acceptable time, 
and in the day of salvation, while he " may be found ;* 
that so they may be forgiven, and preserved from 
great and overwhelming calamities ; from the fears 
of death, and the terrors of judgment. 

7. Thou art my hiding place ; thou shalt preserve 
me from trouble: thou shalt compass me about with 
songs of deliverance. 

The penitent, happily returned to the house of his 
heavenly Father, now esteemeth himself safe under 
his protection ; and resteth in full assurance that all 
his sorrows shall one day be turned into joy, through 
the redemption which is in Christ Jesus. 

8. I will instruct thee, and teach thee in the way 
in which thou shalt go : I will guide thee with mine 
eye. 

The Redeemer is here introduced, returning an 
answer to the penitent's declarations of his humility 
and faith ; promising " instruction" in that wisdom 
which every man wants who continues in sin, toge- 
ther with the direction of the Spirit in the way of 
righteousness, and the superintendence of his watch- 
ful care. Man cannot prevent evils, because he can- 
not foresee them. " Next therefore to the protecting 
power of God's wing, is the securing prospect of 
his eye," saith Dr. South. 

9. Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which 
have no understanding : whose mouth must be held in 
with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee. 

The person speaking in the former verse, or the 
Prophet himself, exhorts sinners to repent, at the 
invitation and encouragement afforded them ; and 
not to continue, like brutes, fierce, obstinate, and 
senseless, until, like them, they must be tamed and 
managed by force, and the severity of discipline. 



Commentary on Psalm XXXVin. 75 



10. Many sorrows shall be to the wicked; but he 
that trusteth in the Lord, mercy shall compass him 
about. 

They who are not to be reformed by gentler me- 
thods, must learn righteousness under the rod of 
affliction, in the school of the cross : and happy are 
they, if their ** sorrows" may so turn to their advan- 
tage. But happier are those who, led by the good- 
ness of God to repentance and faith, enjoy the light 
and protection of " mercy." 

11. Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye righ- 
teous : and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in 
heart *. 

In the beginning of the Psalm, the penitent, smit- 
ten with a sense of his wretchedness on account of 
his sins, extolleth the blessedness of the righteous ; 
he now again doth the same, through a joyful sense 
of his pardon, and restoration to that happy state. 
Let us u rejoice," O Lord Jesu; but let us rejoice 
" in thee/' and in thy salvation; so shall we rejoice 
indeed ! 



PSALM XXXVIII. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Ash- Wednesday, 

ARGUMENT. 

In this Psalm, which is the third of those styled Pe- 
nitential, the sinner, ver. 1. prayeth to be chastened 

* Bishop Lowth is of opinion, this verse should be the first 
of the ensuing Psalm, the repetition being in the very style 
and manner of the Hebrews, and the words repeated and 
varied with the greatest art and elegance. " Be glad in the 
Lord, and rejoice ye righteous ; and shout for joy, all ye that 
are upright in heart. Rejoice in the Lord, O ye righteous ; 
for praise is comely for the upright." See Merrick's Anno- 
tations. 

E2 



76 Commentary on Psalm xxxviii. 

only, and not destroyed ; 2 — 10. describeth the 
state of his soul under various images, chiefly 
borrowed from bodily diseases and pains ; 11, 12. 
complaineth of his friends forsaking, and his ene- 
mies persecuting him ; but, 13 — 15. continueth 
patient and resigned, committing his cause to 
God, whom, 16 — 22. he beseecheth to help him, 
on his confession and repentance. As our Lord 
took upon him the guilt, and suffered the punish- 
ment, of sin ; as there are some passages in the 
latter part of the Psalm, literally predictive of his 
passion, and so understood by the best ancient 
expositors ; and as the sinner should be led by his 
own sorrows to reflect on those of his Redeemer; 
the meditations of the reader are, therefore, under 
each particular, directed by the ensuing comment 
into that channel. 

1. O Lord, rebuke me not in thy wrath ; neither 
chasten me in thy hot displeasure. 

The petition here preferred, as in the sixth Psalm, 
is, that Jehovah would not condemn as a judge, but 
chasten as a father, for the amendment and preser- 
vation of the offender. The same prayer, which we 
sinners make for ourselves, Christ, who bore our 
sins, once made for us. 

2. For thine arrows stick fast in me, and thy hand 
presseth me sore* 

The " arrows" and the " hand" of God, are his 
judgments on sin ; those internal pangs and terrors 
which pierce the soul, and those external afflictions 
and calamities which sink and weigh down the spi- 
rits. The holy Jesus, at the time of his passion, 
received these arrows, and sustained this weight, for 
the sins of the whole world. 

3. There is no soundness in my flesh, because of 



Commentary on Psalm xxxviil. 77 

thine anger ; neither is there any rest, or, peace, or, 
health, in my bones, because of my sin. 

The expressions in this verse are applicable to the 
disorders and diseases which sin hath introduced 
both into the soul and into the body, as the terms, 
" health," and " sickness," are in Scripture no less 
frequently employed to describe the state of the for- 
mer, than that of the latter. If a single sinner thus 
complaineth of his grief and pain, what must have 
been the agony and passion of Him who suffered for 
all, mercifully and lovingly submitted to be " made 
sin for us ?" 

4. For mine iniquities are gone over my head: as 
an heavy burden they are too heavy for me. 

Sins and sorrows are here, as in many other places, 
represented under the image of mighty waters rolling 
incessantly over the head of the person sunk into 
them, and by their accumulated weight depressing 
him, so that he can no more rise above them. Let 
us meditate on that deep and tempestuous ocean, 
into which we were the means of plunging the inno- 
cent Jesus. 

5. My wounds stink and are corrupt, through my 
foolishness. 

Sin is the wound of the soul, which must be 
washed with the tears of repentance, cleansed by the 
blood of Christ, and healed by the Spirit of the Holy 
One. It requires great care and attention, until the 
cure be completed. Otherwise, mortification and 
death ensue, as in the case of outward wounds, if 
neglected, or ill managed. See Isa. i. 6. Luke x. 34. 
All the sores and pains of the body mystical are 
lamented by Him who is the head of that body, and 
who felt the sad effects of these corruptions of our 
nature, in the day of his sufferings. 

6. I am troubled, Heb. writhed, or, distorted, I 
am bowed down greatly : I go mourning all the day 
long. 

As the body by pain, so the soul by guilt, is 
E 3 



78 Commentary on Psalm xxxviii. 

" distorted" from its original uprightness ; it is 
" bowed down" to the earth, through shame and 
fear, being no longer able to look up towards heaven, 
with its accustomed holy confidence ; and, instead 
of rejoicing in a good conscience, and the hope of 
glory, sorrow is its portion, and grief its familiar 
acquaintance. And what wonder, that we should be 
humbled and afflicted for our own sins, when the 
Son of God was so humbled and afflicted for sins not 
his own ? 

7. For my loins are filled with a loathsome disease, 
or, inflammation : and there is no soundness in my 
flesh. 

The " disease," or, f< inflammation," complained 
of, in these metaphorical terms, seems to be the dis- 
temperature of our fallen nature, whereby it cometh 
to pass, that " the flesh lusteth against the spirit;" 
it is that *' other law in our members, warring against 
the law in our minds, bringing us into eaptivity to 
the law of sin," and forcing every son of Adam to 
cry out— " O wretched man that I am, who shall 
deliver me from this body of death ?" Happy is it 
for us, that we are enabled to go on with the 
apostle, and to "thank God," that we are delivered, 
" through Jesus Christ our Lord," on whom were 
laid " the iniquities of us all." 

8. J am feeble and sore broken : I have roared by 
reason of the disquietness of my heart. 

The vigour of a man is broken in pieces, and 
wasted away, by pain and the disquietude from 
thence arising, which cause piercing cries, and loud 
lamentations. When sin in the soul is felt like sick- 
ness in the body, it will produce effects in some 
degree similar. Let us reflect on the sufferings, the 
cries, and the tears, of our Redeemer. 

9. Lord, all my desire is before thee : and my 
groaning is not hid from thee. 

The " desires" and " groans" of the penitent are 
known to God, and marked down in his book \ and 



Commentary on Psalm xxxvin. 79 

there is no small comfort in thinking and acknow- 
ledging that they are so ; but much more comfort is 
there in the remembrance of those inconceivable 
" desires," and those unutterable " groanings," 
which the holy Jesus poured forth for us in the days 
of his flesh, and which prevail for the acceptance of 
our own. 

10. My heart panteth, my strength faileth me : 
as for the light of mine eyes, it also is gone from me. 

In bodily sickness, there are three symptoms of 
approaching dissolution ; and the soul is in great 
extremity, when the three corresponding symptoms 
appear upon her; namely, when she hath neither 
resolution to will, power to perform, nor knowledge 
to discern the things that belong unto her health and 
peace. 

11. My lovers and my friends stand aloof from 
my sore, or, plague, or, affliction ; and my kinsmen, 
or, 7ny neighbours, stand afar off. 

A body afflicted with a noisome distemper, and a 
soul troubled on account of sin, find but few friends, 
who have charity enough to stay with, and to minister 
to them. Let us not be surprised, or offended, at 
this, when we see the righteous Jesus, at his passion, 
destitute and forsaken by all ; as it is written, "Then 
all the disciples forsook him, and fled :" Matt. xxvi. 
56. ; " and all his acquaintance, and the women that 
followed him from Galilee, stood afar off, beholding 
these things." Luke xxiii. 49. 

12. They also that seek after my life, lay snares 
for me: and they that seek my hurt, speak mis- 
chievous things, and imagine deceits all the day long. 

13. But I y as a deaf man, heard not ; and I was 
as a dumb man, that openeth not his mouth. 14. 
Thus Iwas as a man that heareth not, and in whose 
mouth are no reproofs, or, altercations. 

These verses describe and recommend to our imi- 
tation the behaviour of David, and of a greater than 
David, when under persecution; the former from 
E 4 



80 Commentary on Psalm XXXVIII. 

Absalom, Ahithopel, Shimei, &c. the latter from the 
chief priests and elders, Judas, and the Jews. 

15. For in thee, O Lord, do I hope, or, thee do 
I wait for : thou wilt hear, or, answer, O Lord my 
God. 

This verse assigns 1he reason why the ill usage 
which we receive at the hands of men, should be 
borne with patience and resignation ; namely, be- 
cause, as it is not without the permission, so neither 
will it be without the notice, of the Almighty, who 
will one day take the matter into his own hands. 
Christ, saith St. Peter, " who did no sin, neither was 
guile found in his mouth, yet when he was reviled, 
reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened 
not; but committed himself to Him that judgeth 
righteously." 1 Pet. ii. 22. 

16. For 1 said, Hear me, lest otherwise they 
should rejoice over me : when my foot slippeth, they 
magnify themselves against me. 

As the glory of God may be said, in some mea- 
sure, to depend on the behaviour and fate of his ser- 
vants; on that account, besides the stings of con- 
science, temporal punishments, and the danger of 
eternal torments, good men should ever have before 
their eyes the dishonour which is brought on the name 
of God, and the stop which is put to the progress of 
his Gospel, by the fall of any eminently righteous 
and holy person into sin. 

17. For 1 am ready to halt, and my sorrow is con- 
tinually before me. 18. For I will declare mine ini- 
quity : 1 will be sorry for my sin. 

The surest way to have our weakness strengthened, 
and our sin forgiven, is to acknowledge and confess 
both ; and this we need not be ashamed to do, when 
we consider, that he, who is the Lord strong and 
mighty, took our infirmities ; and the King of righ- 
teousness bare our sins, in his own body, on the tree. 

19. But mine enemies are lively, and they are 
strong, and they that hate me wrongfully are multi- 



Commentary on Psalm xxxix. 81 

plied. 20. They also that render evil for good are 
mine adversaries ; because I follow the thing that 
good is. 

These words, joined with the preceding, are ap- 
plicable to the distress of David, and the prosperity 
of his adversaries ; to the sufferings of Christ, and 
the triumph of the Jews; to the afflictions of the 
church, and the gaiety of the world; to the weak- 
ness of faith, and the strength of nature. The result 
of all is this, that salvation cometh of God only, and 
is to be implored in the following words, which con- 
clude the Psalm : 

21. Forsake me not, O Lord ; O my God, be not 
far from me. 22. Make haste to help me, O Lord 
God of my salvation. 



PSALM XXXIX. 

One of the Psalms appointed for the 
Burial Service. 

ARGUMENT. 

The Prophet, in a state of distress and persecution, 
determineth, 1 — 3. to be watchful and silent, as 
our blessed Lord also was, before his enemies. 
4. He prayeth for a due sense of the shortness of 
human life ; and after meditating, 5, 6. on that 
subject, fixeth all his faith and hope in God, 
7. whom he entreateth, but with submission to his 
will, 8 — 10. for the remission of sin, and alle- 
viation of misery. 11. From a view of the human 
body wearing away by sickness, he breaketh out 
12, 13. into a most fervent and affectionate 
prayer, which ought to be continually in the 
mouth of the Christian, upon earth. — This Psalm 
k5 



82 Commentary on Psalm xxxix. 

is, with the utmost propriety, appointed by the 
church to be used at the burial of the dead, as a 
funeral is indeed the best comment upon it. 

1 . 1 said, I will take heed to my ways that I sin 
not with my tongue : I will keep my mouth with a 
bridle, while the wicked is before me. 

The Psalm begins abruptly with the result of a 
meditation on the narrow, slippery, and dangerous 
paths of life; and more especially on the extreme 
difficulty of restraining the tongue, amidst the con- 
tinual temptations and provocations of the adversary. 
In these circumstances, " watchfulness" and " si- 
lence" are resolved on, as the only means of secu- 
rity. Let us behold the Lamb of God, as our great 
pattern and example herein. 

2. 1 was dumb with silence, I held my peace even 
from good, and my sorrovj was stirred. 

There is a time to keep silence, because there are 
men who will not hear ; there are tempers, savage 
and sensual as those of swine, before whom evange- 
lical pearls, or the treasures of heavenly wisdom, are 
not to be cast. This consideration stirreth up fresh 
grief and trouble, in a pious and charitable heart. 
How much more must it have done so, in the soul 
of him who lived and died only for the salvation of 
sinners ! 

3. My heart was hot within me, while 1 was 
musing the fire burned: then spake I with my 
tongue. 

The fire of divine Charity, thus prevented from 
diffusing itself, for the illumination and warmth of 
those around it, and, like other fire, rendered more 
intense by its confinement, presently ascended, in 
the flame of devotion, towards heaven ; while it con- 
tinued to be fed, and preserved in brightness and 
vigour, by meditation on the goodness of God, and 
the ingratitude of man; the transient miseries of 
time, and the durable glories of eternity. 



Commentary on Psalm XXXIX. 63 

4. Lord, make me to know mine end, and the mea- 
sure of my days what it is : that I may know how 
frail I am. 

Wearied with the contradiction of sinners, and 
sickening at the prospect of so much wretchedness 
in the valley of weeping, the soul looks forward to 
her departure from hence, praying for such a sense 
of the shortness of human life, as may enable her to 
bear the sorrows of this world, and excite her to 
prepare for the joys of a better. " O faithless and 
perverse generation," saith even the meek and pa- 
tient Jesus himself, " how long shall I be with you, 
how long shall I suffer you?" Matt. xvii. 17. 

5. Behold, thou hast made my days as an hand- 
breadth, and mine age is as nothing before thee: 
verily every man at his best state, Heb. settled, is 
altogether vanity. 

The age of man, or that of the world, is but a 
" span" in dimension, a moment in duration ; nay, 
it is less than both ; it is " nothing," if compared 
with the unmeasurable extent, and the unnumbered 
days, of eternity: every hour, from that of our birth,, 
brings us so much nearer to our death : nor can we 
continue, for a second of time, in one stay. " Behold," 
then, O Lord, the " vanity" of man ; and be so 
merciful unto him, as to open his eyes, that he may 
behold it himself! 

6. Surely, every man walkeih in a vain show, or, 
in a shadowy image : surely they are disquieted in 
vain: he heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who 
shall gather them. 

This world is, to the other, as a i( shadow" to 
the substance ; nay, temporal life, health, riches, ho- 
nours, and pleasures, can hardly be called shadows 
of those which are eternal, in point of resemblance; 
though, for their illusive and fleeting nature, they 
are shadows indeed. " The mortal state of man is 
compounded of light and darkness ; seeming to be 
something, when really it is nothing ; always alter- 



84 Commentary on Psalm XXXIX. 

ing, and ending on a sudden ; nearest to disappear- 
ing when at full length ; sure to continue no longer 
than while the sun is above the horizon ; but liable 
to vanish, at the interposition of a cloud ; and when 
it is gone, leaving no track behind it." The fate of 
riches heaped up by misers, with unutterable care 
and anxiety, may convince us, how " vainly" men 
are " disquieted !" 

7. And now, Lord, what vmit 1 for ? My hope 
is in thee. 

The soul, that hath a true sense of the vanity of 
the creature, will at once fix her thoughts and affec- 
tions on the Creator. A celebrated writer, describ- 
ing a man of the world on his death- bed, hath ex- 
pressed this sentiment with wonderful sublimity and 
elegance — "Whoever would know, how much piety 
and virtue surpass all external goods, might here 
have seen them weighed against each other, where 
all that gives motion to the active, and elevation 
to the eminent ; all that sparkles in the eye of hope, 
and pants in the bosom of suspicion ; at once be- 
came dust in the balance, without weight and with- 
out regard. Riches, authority, and praise, lose all 
their influence, when they are considered as riches, 
which to-morrow shall be bestowed upon another ; 
authority, which shall this night expire for ever ; 
and praise, which, however merited, or however sin- 
cere, shall, after, a few moments, be heard no more *." 

8. Deliver me from all my transgressions ; make 
me not the reproach of the foolish. 

Affliction hath then had its proper effect, when 
the sufferer is thereby convinced of sin, and there- 
fore prayeth for a removal of the latter, as the only 
way to be delivered from the former. The " re- 
proaches" of the foolish make no inconsiderable 
article in the account of a Christian's sufferings ; 
and our Lord frequently complaineth of them, in the 
Psalms, as one of the bitter ingredients in his awn 
cup. 

* Rambler, Vol. II. No. 54. 



Commentary on Psalm xxxix. 85 



9. I ivas dumb, J opened not my mouth ; because 
thou didst it. 

Whatever materials compose the rod of affliction, 
and from whatsoever quarter the stroke conieth, let 
us remember, that the rod is grasped, and the stroke 
is inflicted, by the hand of our heavenly Father. To 
revenge ourselves on the instrument, is folly ; to 
murmur against the agent, is something- worse. 

10. Remove thy stroke away from me ; 1 am con- 
sumed by the blow of thy hand. 

The Christian, who knows from whence his trou- 
bles proceed, knows where to apply for relief ; and 
having first " petitioned" for remission of sin, ver. 8, 
he then humbly supplicates for a mitigation of his 
sorrow. " Father," saith the beloved Son of God, 
" if thou be willing, remove this cup from me.'"' 
Luke xxii. 42. 

11. When thou with rebukes dost correct man for 
iniquity, thou makest his beauty, or, all that is de- 
lightful, or, desirable in him, to consume away like a 
moth: surely every man is vanity. 

The body of a man is as a " garment" to the soul : 
in this garment sin hath lodged a " moth," which, 
by degrees, fretteth and weareth away, first, the 
beauty, then the strength, and, finally the contex- 
ture of its parts. Whoever has watched the pro- 
gress of a consumption, or any other lingering dis- 
temper, nay, the slow and silent devastations of time 
alone, in the human frame, will need no farther il- 
lustration of this just and affecting similitude; but 
will discern at once, the propriety of the reflection, 
which follows upon it: — " Surely every man is va- 

12. Hear my prayer, OLord, and give ear unto 
my cry : hold not thy peace at my tears ; for I am 
a stranger with thee, and a sojourner, as all my fa- 
titers were. 

Meditation should terminate in devotion ; and me- 
ditation on human vanity and misery, if indulged as 



86 Commentary on Psalm XL. 

it deserves to be, certainly will do so ; it will bring 
us to our " prayers," our " cries," and our u tears 
and teach us to address the throne of grace, as poor 
pilgrims in a strange land, who have here no abiding 
city, but are soon to strike onr tents, and be gone 
for ever. Such was David, though king of Israel; 
and such was the Son of David, in the body of his 
flesh, though Lord of all things : both were u stran- 
gers and sojourners, as all their fathers," Abraham, 
Isaac, and Jacob, were before them, and as all their 
children have been and shall be after them, upon the 
earth. 

13. O spare me> that I may recover strength, be- 
fore I go hence , and be no more. 

Most fervently and affectionately, therefore, ought 
the Christian pilgrim to pray, that God would spare 
his life and respite the fatal sentence, until all that 
hath been decayed, through the frailty of nature, be 
renewed by the power of grace ; that his perfect re* 
conciliation with the Almighty may be accomplished, 
and his plenary pardon sealed in heaven, before he 
taketh his last farewell of the world, and ceaseth to 
have an existence in these regions of vanity and 
sorrow. 



PSALM XL. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Good Friday, 

ARGUMENT. 

It is plain, from ver. 6 — 8. of this Psalm, compared 
with Heb.x. 5. that the Prophet is speaking in the 
person of Christ, who, 1 — 5. celebrateth the de- 
liverance wrought for his mystical body, the 
church, by his resurrection from the grave, effect- 



Commentary on Psalm XL. 87 

ing thai of his members from the guilt and domi- 
nion of sin ; for the abolition of which he d e- 
clareth, 6 — 8. the inefficacy of the legal sacrifices, 
and mentioneth his own inclination to do the will of 
his Father, and, 9, 10. to preach righteousness to 
the world. 11 — 13. He representeth himself as 
praying, while under his sufferings, for his own 
and his people's salvation ; he foretelleth 14, 15. 
the confusion and desolation of his enemies, and, 

16. the joy and thankfulness of his disciples and 
servants ; for the speedy accomplishment of which, 

17. he preferreth a petition. 

1. I waited patiently for the Lord, and he in- 
clined unto me, and heard my cry. 

In this verse we hear the voice of the meek Lamb 
of God, who, though never sorrow was like unto 
his sorrow, " waited patiently," till the time ap- 
pointed by the Father came, when that sorrow should 
be turned into joy. Let not his disciples expect to 
*i inherit the promises," otherwise than H through 
faith and patience." Four thousand years, the 
church, under the patriarchs, the law, and the pro- 
phets, waited for the first advent of Messiah; and, 
seventeen hundred years, the church, under the Gos- 
pel, hath waited for the second. Jehovah, who in- 
clined himself to the prayers of the former, will also 
hear the cries of the latter. 

2. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, 
Heb. a pit of confused tumultuous noise, out of the 
miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and esta- 
blished my goings. 

The sufferings from which our Redeemer was 
delivered, are here described under the image of a 
dark subterraneous cavern, from which there was no 
emerging, and where roaring cataracts of water broke 
in upon him, overwhelming him on every side ; till, 



$8 Commentary on Psalm XL. 

as it is expressd in tke xviiith Psalm, ft God sent 
from above, and took him, and drew him out of 
many waters." Let us celebrate the deliverance of 
Christ, as a pledge and earnest of our own rescue 
from the troubles and temptations of life ; from the 
power of death and the grave ; from the " horrible 
pit, and the miry clay when we shall be exalted 
on " the rock" of our salvation, and " our goings" 
shall be " established" for ever. 

3. And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even 
praise unto our God : many shall see it, and fear, 
and shall trust in the Lord. 

Every new deliverance requires " a new song." 
Christians sing their wonderful redemption from sin 
and death, in these holy hymns, which God, by his 
Spirit, hath put into their mouths, and which, by 
their application to matters evangelical, are become 
" new" songs, setting forth the praise and glory of 
God, through Jesus Christ. And who can hear the 
church, singing the victory and triumph of her mighty 
and merciful Saviour, withoutbeing incited to "fear," 
and to " believe." 

4. Blessed is thai man that maketh the Lord his 
trust, and respecteth not theproud, nor such as turn 
aside to lies. 

He who is sensible how much God hath done, and 
how little the world can do for him, will earnestly 
and heartily pronounce the blessedness of the man, 
who relies upon the real power and goodness of the 
former, instead of suffering himself to be deceived 
by the empty parade, and fallacious promises, of the 
latter. 

5. Many, O Lord, my God, are thy wonderful 
works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which 
are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order 
unto thee: if J would declare and speak of them, they 
are more than can be numbered. 

The counsels and works of the ever-blessed Tri- 
nity, planned and executed for the benefit of man, 

3 



Commentary on Psalm XL. 89 



in his creation and preservation, his redemption and 
sanctification, in order to his resurrection and glori- 
fication, through Christ, already risen and glorified, 
are subjects which can never be exhausted, by the 
intellectual powers of men or angels ; but will, to 
both, afford matter of incessant meditation, and end- 
less praise. Yet, how little do we meditate on them: 
how seldom, and how coldly, do we praise God for 
them ! 

6. Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire^ 
mine ears hast thou opened: burnt-offering and sin- 
offering hast thou not required. 7. Then said 1, 
Lo, I come : in the volume of the hook it is written 
of me, 8. I delight to do thy will, O my God : yea, 
thy law is within my heart. 

These words, as the apostle informeth us, Heb. 
x. 5. are spoken by Christ, in his own person. In 
them he proclaims the inefficacy of the legal sacrifices 
to take away sin, and the divine disapprobation of 
such sacrifices, when relied on for that purpose. 
He sets forth his own readiness to do, and to suffer, 
the will of the Father, implied in the Psalm by the 
words — " mine ears hast thou opened but more 
plainly expressed in the apostle's citation, by the 
paraphrase, " a body hast thou prepared me*." He 

* For the expression, " Mine ears hast thou opened," seems 
equivalent to — " Thou hast made me obedient/' Thus, Isa. 
1.5. " The Lord God hath opened mine ears, and I was not 
rebellious, neither turned away back. I gave my back to the 
snifters," &c. The LXX. perhaps, meant to interpret this 
symbolical expression, when they rendered it by o-apa. hoct^- 
tk7u) /xo», "Thou hast prepared," or " fitted my body," that 
is, to be " obedient," and to " do thy will." See Dr. Jack- 
son, vol. ii. p. 882. This seems to be the best sense of the 
present reading, and is well expressed by Mr. Merrick, in 
his poetical version : 

Nor sacrifice thy love can win, 
Nor offerings from the stain of sin 

Obnoxious man shall clear : 
Thy hand my mortal frame prepares 
(Thy hand, whose signature it bears), 

And opes my willing ear. 



90 Commentary on Psalm XL. 



refers to the predictions concerning Messiah, in the 
Scriptures of the Old Testament, which is here styled 
— " the volume, or roll, of the book." He declares 
the pleasure he had in doing the Father's will, or in 
accomplishing the law; w 7 hich had taken possession 
of all his powers and faculties ; having been admitted 
by the understanding, retained in the memory, and 
rendered operative in the will. " I delight to do thy 
will, O my God : yea, thy law is within my heart." 

9. I have preached righteousness in the great con- 
gregation : hy I have not refrained my lips, O Lord, 
thou knowest. 10. I have not hid thy righteousness 
within my heart ; I have declared thy faithfulness 
and thy salvation : I have not concealed thy loving 
kindness and thy truth from the great congrega- 
tion. 

As the preceding verses described the priestly 
office of our Lord, in the execution of which he offer- 
ed himself, and his all-perfect obedience, for us ; so, 
in the passage now before us, he declares himself to 

Mr. Pierce, of Exeter, proposed a conjectural alteration of 
the word DOIN, " ears/' into the two words, n*0 ]N> " then a 
body/' &c. in which case, a learned friend suggests, j"VHp,must 
likewise be altered to J"rv2, "hast thou prepared, or finished." 
Bishop Lowth wishes to adopt Mr. Pierce's emendation, iu 
order to render the original conformable to St. Paul's citation 
from the LXX. And I must confess, if the apostle's argu- 
ment turned on the word au^ct, such an emendation might 
seem necessarj'. It is true, au^a, X^crrs occurs in the suc- 
ceeding verse ; but I think it not essential to the argument, 
which seems to stand clear and full, whatever be the meaning 
of aujxa. xctrygTKTu fxoi — " When he said, Sacrifice, &c. thou 
wouldest not — then he said, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. 
He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second." 
The author of the anonymous notes in Mr. Merrick's Annota- 
tions, I find, is of this opinion. " It is not certain that the 
apostle argues from the word c-upx at all. He quotes the 
translation of the LXX. as he found it in his copy; lays a 
stress on what is in the Hebrew, but none on the rest; either 
knowing it not to be there, or being restrained, by the Spirit 
of God, from making use of it." See Appendix to Mr. Mer- 
rick's Annotations, p. 294. 



Commentary on Psalm XL. 91 



have acted up to the prophetical part of his charac- 
ter, by " preaching''' the doctrines of truth, righteous- 
ness, and salvation, to the people, without concealing 
aught through negligence, fear, or favour. Happy 
the minister of Christ, who, on his death- bed, is able 
to say the same ! 

11. Withhold not thou thy tender mercies from 
me, O Lord : let thy loving kindness and thy truth 
alway preserve me. 

The beloved Son of God here prayeth for the con- 
tinuation of that mercy, and the accomplishment of 
those gracious promises, to his body, the church, 
which made the subjects of his heavenly discourses, 
in the days of his flesh. Such ought to be the sub- 
jects of our discourses, and of our prayers. 

12. For innumerable evils have coinpassed me 
about : mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so 
that I am not able to look up; they are more than 
the hairs of mine head : therefore my heart faileth 
me. 

If these words, as well as the foregoing, are sup- 
posed to be spoken by our Lord (and indeed there 
doth not appear to be any change of person), they 
must be uttered by him, considering himself (for so 
the primitive writers suppose him in the Psalms fre- 
quently to consider himself) as still suffering in his 
body mystical, the church ; and lamenting, as head, 
both the transgressions and the afflictions of the 
members, accomplishing their warfare in the world. 
Thus much at least we know, that, after his ascen- 
sion, when the members were persecuted on earth, 
the head complained from heaven, as sensible of the 
pain, " Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou ME?" 
Some critics think the word Oty, in the text, may be 
translated, " my punishment. ' But the author of 
the anonymous notes, mentioned below, observes, 
that all " punishments, properly speaking, pre-sup- 
pose sin ; and especially when they are represented, 
as here, to overtake and seize a person. Therefore, 



92 Commentary on Psalm XL. 

to understand this of Christ, it must be interpreted 
of imputed sins, or punishments for them." Mer- 
rick's Annotations, p. 295. 

13. Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me : O Lord, 
make haste to help me. 

This short, but forcible prayer, for help and deli- 
verance, in God's good time, and according to his 
good pleasure, continues, and must continue, to be 
the prayer of the churchy and of all her children, 
until the day of final redemption. 

14. Let them, or, they shall, be ashamed and con- 
founded together that seek after my soul to destroy 

it ; let them, or, they shall, be driven backward, and 
put to shame, that wish me evil, 15. Let them, or, 

they shall, be desolate for a reward of their shame 

that say unto me, Aha, aha! 

The shame, confusion, and desolation to be brought 
on the Jews by the resurrection, exaltation, and 
power of him whose blood they thirsted after, and 
whom they mocked and insulted when in his last ago- 
nies on the cross, are here foretold ; and the pro- 
phecy hath been punctually fulfilled. But a more 
horrible confusion and desolation awaiteth them, and 
all other impenitent sinners, at the future revelation 
of the righteous judgment of God ; when vengeance 
must destroy those, whom mercy cannot reclaim. 
And, to this ultimate issue of things, the church di- 
recteth her views. 

16. Let all those that seek thee, or, all those that 
seek thee shall, rejoice and be glad in thee : let such 
as love thy salvation, or, such as love thy salvation 
shall, say continually, The Lord be magnified. 

As the last verses predicted the calamities which 
should befall the enemies of Messiah, this describeth 
the unfeigned joy and gladness, springing up in the 
hearts of such as love the salvation of Jesus, and 
evermore magnify his holy name in the church, for 
the blessings of redemption, " eating their meat," as 
the first Christians are said to have done, " with 



Commentary on Psalm xli. 93 

gladness and singleness of heart, praising God." 
Acts ii. 46. 

17. But, I am poor and needy ; yet the Lord 
thinketh upon me : thou art my help and my deli- 
verer ; make no tarrying t O my God. 

The church, like her Redeemer, is often poor and 
afflicted in this world, but Jehovah thinketh upon 
her, and is solicitous for her support ; she is weak 
and defenceless, but Jehovah is her help and her de- 
liverer. With such a Father and such a Friend, 
poverty becometh rich, and weakness itself is strong. 
In the mean time, let us remember, that he who once 
came in great humility, shall come again in glorious 
majesty. " Make no tarrying, O our God ; but 
come, Lord Jesus, come quickly." Rev. xxii. 20. 



PSALM XLI. 

ARGUMENT. 

The application made of the 9th verse of this Psalm, 
John xiii. 18. showeth, that the Prophet is speak- 
ing in the person of Messiah. 1 — 3. He declareth 
the blessedness of the man that considereth the 
poor ; 4. he prayeth for mercy and favour ; 5 — 9. 
describeth the behaviour of his adversaries, and 
of one person in particular ; 10. petitioneth for 
deliverance; 11, 12. rejoiceth in hope ; and, 13. 
breaketh out into thanksgiving. 

1. Blessed is he that considereth the poor : the 
Lord will deliver him in time of trouble: Heb. in 
the day of evil. 

As Christ considereth us, in our state of poverty, 
so ought we most attentively to consider him, in his ; 
to consider what he suffered in his own person ; to 
discern him suffering in his poor afflicted members ; 



94 



Commentary on Psalm XLI. 



and to extend to them the mercy which he extended 
to us. He, who was " blessed" of Jehovah, and 
" delivered in the evil day/ 7 by a glorious resurrec- 
tion, will " bless" and '* deliver/' in like manner, 
such as, for his sake, love and relieve their bre- 
thren. 

2. The Lord will preserve him and keep him alive, 
or, revive him; and he shall be blessed upon the 
earth ; and thou wilt not deliver him unto the will 
of his enemies. 

The compassionate and charitable disciple of the 
holy Jesus is often wonderfully " preserved," and 
rendered prosperous, even in this world ; but his 
greatest comfort is, that, like his Master, he shall one 
day be w revived," to inherit the " blessing," in a 
better country, where no " enemy" can approach to 
hurt or molest him. 

3. The Lord will strengthen him upon the bed of 
languishing : thou wilt make all his bed in his sick- 
ness. 

An exemption from sorrow and sickness is not 
promised to the children of God ; but strength and 
comfort are given unto them, from above, to support 
and carry them through their trials ; and they who, 
in the days of their health, have, by their alms, given 
rest to the bodies, or, by their counsels, restored 
peace to the consciences, of others, shall have the 
bed of pain made easy under them, by the hand of 
their heavenly Father. 

4. I said, Lord, be merciful unto me: heal my 
soul ;for I have sinned against thee. 

Every son of Adam may, and ought, in these 
words, to acknowledge his sin, and to entreat for 
mercy and grace, to heal the disorders of his nature. 
If we suppose Messiah ever to have uttered this 
verse in his devotions, as we know he applied the 
9th verse to his own case, it is obvious, that he must 
be understood to confess the sins, not of his own righ- 
teous person, but of the nature he had assumed, in 



Commentary on Psalm XLr. 



95 



order to cleanse and purify it by his sufferings. See 
above, Psalm xl. 12. 

5. Mine enemies speak evil of me, When shall he 
die, and his name perish ? 

Here we may undoubtedly consider the poor and 
lowly Jesus, in the day of his humiliation, when he 
was daily and hourly calumniated by his adversaries ; 
when, restless and impatient at beholding him still 
alive, they said — '■' What do we, for this man doth 
many miracles ? If we let him thus alone, all men 
will believe on him. Perceive ye how ye prevail 
nothing? Behold, the world is gone after him;" 
John xi. 47. xii. 19; and when, grown more furi- 
ous and clamorous, they cried, " Away with him, 
away : with him, crucify him, crucify him." How 
many, with the same bitterness of spirit, " speak 
evil" continually of his doctrines, his church, his 
ordinances, and his ministers ; in effect, saying, 
" When shall he die, and his name perish?" 

6. And if he come to see me, he speaketh vanity: 
his heart gathereth iniquity to itself ; when he goeth 
abroad, he telleth it. 

Thus the enemies of Christ " sent out sptes, who 
should feign themselves just men, that they might 
take bold of his words, that so they might deliver him 
unto the power and authority of the governor;" 
Luke xx. 20. Thus Judas sat down at the last 
supper, all the while meditating the destruction of 
his Master ; till at length, rising from table, and go- 
ing abroad, he put his design in execution : and thus 
the mystical body of Christ frequently suffers, as his 
natural body once did, by means of hypocrites and 
traitors. 

7. All that hate me whisper together against me : 
against me do they devise my hurt. 8. An evil 
disease, say they, Heb. a word, or, matter, of Be- 
lial, namely, the crime charged upon him, cleaveth 
fast unto him ; and now that he lieth, he shall rise 
up no more. 



96 Commentary on Psalm xli. 

The whispers of the Pharisees, the counsels of the 
sanhedrim, and their taunts and scoffs at the blessed 
Jesus, when on the cross, " numbered with the 
transgressors," nor ever expected to " arise" again 
from the dead, are here most significantly and plainly 
pointed out. The same weapons are frequently em- 
ployed against the servants of Christ; but let them 
not be, on that account, discouraged from following 
their Master. 

9. Yea, mine own familiar friend* in whom I 
trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lift up his 
heel against me. 

" I speak not of you all," saith our Lord to his 
disciples ; " I know whom I have chosen ; but that 
the Scripture may be fulfilled, He that eateth bread 
with me, hath lift up his heel against me:" John 
xiii. 18. The sufferings of the church, like those of 
her Redeemer, generally begin at home ; her open 
enemies can do her no harm, until her pretended 
friends hav«e delivered her into their hands : and, un- 
natural, as it may seem, they, who have waxed fat 
upon her bounty, are sometimes the first to ;< lift up 
the heel" against her, 

10. But thou, O Lord, he merciful unto me, and 
raise me up, that I may requite them, or, and I shall 
requite them. 

The holy Jesus here maketh his prayer unto the 
Father, for the accomplishment of the promised re- 
surrection, and foretelleth the righteous judgment 
that would be executed on his enemies, after their 
rejection of the gracious offers made them, by the 
apostles, in his name, notwithstanding all that they 
had said and done against him. Then the kingdom 
of God was taken from them, and their house was 
left unto them desolate. The hour is coming when 
the church shall arise to glory, and all her enemies 
shall be confounded. 

11. By this I know that thou favourest me, be- 
muse mine enemy doth not triumph over me. 12. 



Commentary on Psalm xliv. 97 



And as for me, thou upholdest me in mine integrity, 
and settest me before thy face for ever. 

The Christian, like his Master, must expect sor- 
row and tribulation, but he is not thereby deprived 
of the "favour" of heaven; his spiritual enemies, 
whatever trouble they may give him, yet do not 
'? triumph" over him; he is preserved in his "in- 
tegrity," and his reward will be the M vision" of God. 
For the exaltation, therefore, of our Lord Jesus 
Christ, and of all believers, in, by, and through him. 

13. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from ever- 
lasting and to everlasting. Amen, and Amen. 



PSALM XLIV. 

ARGUMENT. 

In this Psalm we hear the voice of the church, un- 
der persecution ; 1 — 3. recounting the mercies of 
God vouchsafed to his servants of old time ; 4 — 8. 
declaring her confidence, that she shall experi- 
ence the same in her present distress, and shall at 
length overcome through the power of her Re- 
deemer ; for that, notwithstanding her seeming 
desertion and manifold sufferings, 9 — 16. there is 
stii a faithful remnant, 17 — 22. of those who have 
not bowed the knee to Baal, and who cease not, 
23—26. to cry unto God for mercy and deliver- 
ance. 

1. We have heard with our ears, O God, our 
fathers have told us, what works thou didst in their 
days, in the times of old. 

The works wrought of old, by the arm of Jehovah, 
for the salvation of his people, are recorded by the 



98 Commentary on Psalm XLiv. 

Spirit in the Scriptures of troth, that " through pa- 
tience and comfort of those Scriptures," as the 
apostle expresses it, the church and people of God, 
whensoever oppressed and afflicted, in any age or 
country " may have hope," that the same God will 
exert the same power in their behalf. And great is 
the light, great is the consolation, which the sacred 
history, when thus applied, will always afford to the 
troubled mind. 

2. How thou didst drive out the heathen with thy 
hand, and plantedst them : how thou didst afflict 
the people, and cast them out. 

If the dispossession of the Canaanites, and the 
establishment of the house of Jacob in their land, 
furnished the distressed church of Israel with suf- 
ficient ground for confidence : how much force hath 
the argument since received, by the accomplishment 
of what was then typified; by the victories of the true 
Joshua or Jesus, by the fall of Paganism, and the 
plantation of the Christian faith in its stead ! 

3. For they got not the land in possession by their 
own sword, neither did their own arm save them; but 
thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of 
thy countenance, because thou hadst a favour unto 
them, 

As it sufficiently appears, that the settlement of 
Israel in the promised land was the work of God, 
from the miraculous fall of Jericho ; from the pro- 
longation of the day, at the word of Joshua; from 
the slaughter of the enemy by hail-stones from 
heaven, &c. &c. so was it the first thing which an 
Israelite was in duty bound to acknowledge, if he 
hoped for more mercies at the hand of God. The 
Christian, in like manner, begins and ends all his 
prayers with an humble and thankful acknowledge- 
ment of the free mercy of God in Jesus Christ ; con- 
fessing, that he " got not" his title to salvation, nor 
should enter into the possession of it, by " his own" 
power or merit, but by the «■ right band and the arm 



Commentary on Psalm XLiv. 99 

of his Redeemer, and the light of his countenance, 
because he had a favour unto him." 

4. Thou art my King, O God: command deliver- 
ances for Jacob. 

In these words, the church sums up her argument ; 
as if she had said, O thou, who, going forth before 
thy people, hast so often and so wonderfully wrought 
salvation of old time, I still acknowledge thee as my 
King, able and willing to save ; O manifest yet again 
thy power, yet again let me experience thy mercy. 
Behold all things are at thy command ; all events are 
at thy disposal. O gracious Saviour, let all work 
together for good, to her whom thou lovest. 

5. Through thee will we push down our enemies : 
through thy name will we tread them under that rise 
up against us. 

The people of God, however persecuted by the 
power of the world, here declare, that their faith 
faileth not ; that the adversary cannot take from them 
their holy confidence in God, through whom, and in 
whose saving name, whenever he shall think fit to 
hear their prayers, and to appear in their cause, they 
doubt not of obtaining a final victory, and celebrat- 
ing a glorious triumph over all their enemies, terres= 
trial and infernal. Such should be the hope of every 
afflicted souL 

6. For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall 
my sword save me. 7. But thou hast saved us from 
our enemies, and hast put them to shame that hated 
us. 8. In God we boast all the day long, and praise 
thy name for ever. 

In spiritual, as well as temporal warfare, the ap- 
pointed means are to be used, but " not trusted in 
man is to fight, but God giveth the victory : and to 
him must be ascribed the praise, and the power, and 
the glory ; that as it is written, " He who glorieth, 
may glory in the Lord." And thus the Christian 
church daily singeth, after the example of her blessed 



100 Commentary on Psalm xliv. 

and holy representative, " My soul doth magnify the 
Lord, and my spirit rejoiceth in God my Saviour." 

9. But thou hast cast off, and put us to shame ; 
and goest not forth with our armies. 

The church having declared her confidence, 
founded on the former mercies of God vouchsafed 
unto her, proceedeth now to describe her pitiable 
state under persecution, when the protection of the 
Almighty seemed, for a season to be withdrawn, so 
that she was no longer able to stand before her 
enemies. 

10. Thou makest us to turn hack from the enemy ; 
and they which hate us spoil for themselves. 

The first consequence of a victory, gained by the 
enemies over the frriends of the church, is rapine and 
sacrilege ; the invasion of her patrimony, and the 
plunder of her revenues ; allured by the prospect of 
which, robbery hath sometimes entered into the sanc- 
tuary, under the mask of reformation. 

31. Thou hast given us like sheep appointed for 
meat ; and hath scattered us among the heathen. 

The second calamity which is permitted to fall on 
the church, in the day of adversity, is, that her 
people are doomed to sudden and cruel deaths by 
sanguinary edicts. A third calamity is that of their 
being driven in times of persecution, from their na- 
tive country, to wander among strangers and aliens, 
or among those in whose communion it is judged un- 
lawful to join. 

12. Thou sellest thy people for nought, and dost 
not increase thy wealth by their price. 

A fourth misery incidental to the people of God, 
when under persecution, is, that he permits them to 
be held cheap and vile, and to be sold into slavery 
by their enemies, for little or nothing ; a situation 
far more to be dreaded than the sword of the exe- 
cutioner. 

13. Thou makest us a reproach to our neighbours, 



Commentary on Psalm XLIV. 101 

a scorn and a derision to them that are round about 
us. 14. Thou makes t us a bye-word among the hea- 
then ; a shaking of the head among the people. 15. 
My confusion is continually before me, and the shame 
of my face hath covered me : 10; '-For the voice of 
him that reproacheth and blasphemeth ; by reason of 
the enemy and avenger. 

The fifth and last bitter fruit of persecution is, that 
thereby the name, and truth, and church, and people 
of God, are exposed to the insolent and blasphemous 
scoffs and jeers of infidels ; nor is there any circum- 
stance to a pious soul more grievous and afflictive 
than this. 

17. All this is come upon us ; yet have we not for- 
gotten thee, neither have we dealt falsely in thy co- 
venant. 18. Our heart is not turned back, neither 
have our steps declined from thy way : 19. Though 
thou hast sore broken us in the place of dragons, and 
covered us with the shadow of death. 

It is certain that God is provoked, by the sins of 
a church, to let loose the fury of the oppressor upon 
her. This is acknowledged by Daniel in his prayer ; 
ch.ix.: by the three children in the furnace; Song, 
ver. 5, 6. : by the Maccabean martyrs, suffering un- 
der Antiocbus ; 2 Mace. vii. 18. : and by Cyprian, 
and others, in the primitive times. It is not less cer- 
tain, that no mere man can say, he is free from trans- 
gression. The verses now under consideration, are 
not, therefore, spoken by the whole church, but by 
the faithful remnant; nor do they imply an exemp- 
tion from all sin, but by a stedfast perseverance in the 
profession of God's true religion, from which it is the 
aim of persecution to seduce, or to force them. The 
malice of the tormentors is here compared to the 
venom of " serpents ;" and the state of a suffering 
church, to the gloom of" death" itself. Happy the 
soul, that, in the extremity of affliction, can, with 
humble confidence, thus make her appeal to God, as 
having held fast her integrity against all the efforts 



102 Commentary on Psalm XLIV. 

made to wrest it from her, and not having suffered 
the blasts of adverse fortune, by wearing out pa- 
tience, to part her from the anchor of faith. 

20. If we have forgotten the name of our God, or 
stretched out our hands to a strange god; 21. Shall 
not God search this out ? for he knoweth the secrets 
of the heart. 

The consideration, that " God is greater than our 
heart, and knoweth all things," 1 John iii. 20. ought 
to be strongly impressed on our minds at all times ; 
but more particularly, when we are tempted by the 
world (as, one way or other, we all frequently are) to 
deny our Master, either by word or deed ; and when 
we have occasion to call heaven to witness our up-> 
Tightness under such temptation. 

22. Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day 
long ; we are counted as sheep for the slaughter. 

The sufferings of the martyrs were a sufficient 
proof that they had not yielded to the temptations of 
the enemy. St. Paul, Rom. viii. 36. cites this verse 
as predictive of the persecutions then beginning to 
be raised against the Christians. All may apply it 
to themselves, who are in circumstances of the same 
nature ; and persecution is generally consistent with 
itself, contriving, by some means or other, to be rid 
of those who stand in its way. It is a storm, before 
which all must either bend or be broken. 

23. Awake, why steepest thou, O Lord? Arise, 
cast us not off for ever, 24. Wherefore hidest thou 
thy face and for get test our affliction and our op* 
pression ? 

There is a time, when the triumphs of the adver- 
sary, and the afflictions of the church, tempt men to 
think, that the eye of Providence is closed, or turned 
^way, and that the Almighty hath ceased to remem- 
ber their sad estate. But the truth is, that God only 
giveth his people an opportunity of feeling their own 
insufficiency ; and waiteth till, by fervent and imr 
portuate prayer, they solicit his help. For so the 



Commentary on Psalm XL v. 103 

holy Jesus slept, while the ship was covered with 
the waves ; until, awakened by the cries of his disci- 
ples, he arose to their assistance, and spoke the 
tempest into a perfect calm. 

25. For our soul is bowed down to the dust ; out- 
belly cleave th unto the earth. 

They who are not brought into this state of humi- 
liation by outward sufferings, should bring them- 
selves into it by inward mortification and self denial, 
by contrition and abasement, if they would put up 
such prayers, as the Majesty of heaven will deign 
to accept and answer ; if they would repeat with our 
church, in the spirit of the Litany, the concluding 
verse of this Psalm — 

26. Arise for our help, and redeem us, for thy 
mercies* sake. 



PSALM XLV. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Christmas-day. 

ARGUMENT. 

In this Psalm, which is one of those appointed to be 
used on Christmas-day, the Prophet, after, 1. 
proposing his subject, proceeds to celebrate King- 
Messiah, 2. for his spiritual beauty and eloquence ; 
3, 4, 5. his power and victories; 6. his throne and 
sceptre ; 7. his righteousness and inauguration ; 
8. his royal robes, and glorious palace. 9, The 
church is introduced as his spouse ; her appear- 
ance and dress are described; 10, 11, 12, it is 
foretold, that the nations shall bring their offer- 
ings to her ; 13, 14, 15. her attire, her presenta- 
f 4 



104 Commentary on Psalm XL v. 

tion to Christ, with her attendant train, and the 
universal joy and gladness, occasioned by the so- 
lemnization of the nuptials, are set forth. 16. 
The Prophet predicteth the fruits of this divine 
union; and, 17. the use that should be made of his 
sacred epithalamium by the faithful, from genera- 
tion to generation. 

1. My heart is inditing, Heb. boileth, or, bub- 
ble th up, a good matter, or, the good word : I speak 
of the things which I have made touching the King : 
my tongue is the pen of a ready writer. 

"The Spirit of the Lord," saith David elsewhere, 
2 Sam. xxiii. 2. M spake by me, and his word was in 
my tongue." In like manner, we are to conceive 
the Prophet here to be full of the divine Spirit, which 
inspired him with " the good word," or the glad tid- 
ings of salvation. The sacred fire, inclosed in his 
heart, expanded itself within, till at length it brake 
forth with impetuosity, to enlighten and to revive 
mankind with this glorious prediction " touching 
the King," Messiah ; and this was uttered by his 
tongue, under the guidance of the Spirit, as, in writ- 
ing, the pen is directed by the hand that holds it. 

2. Thou art fairer than the children of men: 
grace is poured into thy lips : therefore God hath 
blessed thee for ever. 

After a short introduction, the Prophet stays not 
to enter regularly upon the subject, in the formal 
way of narration ; but, as if he saw the Divine Per- 
son, whom he was about to celebrate, standing be- 
fore him, he breaks out in ecstatic admiration of the 
second Adam, so different from all the decendants 
of the first ! compounded of a soul fair above all cre- 
ated spirits, and a body pure and perfect, and now 
brighter than the meridian sun; being invested with 
the unutterable effulgence of the Divine Nature. 
Next to the spiritual beauty of Messiah, the Prophet 



Commentary on Psalm xlv, 105 

is astonished (as those who heard him speak, in the 
days of his flesh, afterwards were) at the " gra- 
cious words which proceeded out of his mouth," 
Luke iv. 22. through the " grace poured into his 
lips." Such honey and milk were under his tongue, 
so delightful and salutary was his doctrine, that even 
his enemies found themselves obliged to confess, 
" never man spake like this man:" John vii. 46. 
His word instructed the ignorant, resolved the doubt- 
ful, comforted the mourners, reclaimed the wicked, 
silenced his adversaries, healed diseases, controlled 
the elements, and raised the dead. Therefore hath 
the Father loved, and exalted, and blessed him, fo- 
evermore. 

3. Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty, 
with thy glory and thy majesty. 

The Prophet, having described the beauty and the 
eloquence of the King, proceedeth now to set forth 
his power, and to arm him, as a warrior, for the bat- 
tle. The ** sword" of Messiah is his Word, which, 
in the language of St. Paul, is said to be " quick and 
powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword;" 
and is represented by St. John, as " a sharp two- 
edged sword ;" coming out of the " mouth" of Christ : 
Heb, iv. 12. Rev. i. 16. With this weapoa he pre- 
vailed, and thereby made his " glory and majesty" to 
be known throughout the world. 

4. And in thy majesty ride prosperously, because 
or, for the sake, of truth, aud meekness, and righ- 
teousness: and thy right hand shall teach thee ter- 
rible, or t wonderful things*. 

Messiah is in these words magnificently described, 
as making his progress among the nations, seated in 
his triumphal chariot, adorned with all the regal vir- 

* " The sense, perhaps, may be this : Thy right hand, by its 
promptness to encounter danger, shall bring- thee acquainted 
with terrible things : thy right hand shall know its office ; by 
habitual exercise, shall render thee expert in war, and lead 
thee on from conquest to conquest." Merrick. 

p5 



106 Commentary on Psalm xly. 

tues, achieving the most astonishing victories, and, 
by the irresistible might of his power, subduing ido- 
latry and iniquity, to the faith and temper of the 
Gospel. 

5. Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the 
King's enemies ; whereby the people fall under thee* 

The Prophet goes on to represent Messiah as a 
warrior, completely armed, and skilful in the use of 
every weapon. Thus a prince is portrayed, Rev. 
vi. 2. " I saw, and behold a white horse, and he 
that sate on him had a bow, and a crown was given 
unto him ; and he went forth conquering, and to con- 
quer." The conquests of Messiah are either those 
of his word over sin, or those of his arm over the per- 
secuting powers. 

6. Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever: the 
sceptre of thy kingdom is a right sceptre. 

The battle being fought, and the victory gained, 
we are called to the consideration of the c< throne'' 
and " sceptre" of King Messiah, whom the Prophet 
addresseth as God. His throne is distinguished from 
the thrones of this world, by its endless duration ; 
his sceptre, from the sceptres of earthly potentates, 
by the unerring rectitude of its adminstration. 

7. Thou lovest righteousness and hatest wicked- 
ness : therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee 
with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. 

The sermons, the example, and, above all, the 
death of Christ, for the expiation of sin, demonstra- 
ted his love of righteousness, and hatred of wicked- 
ness ; and, " because he humbled himself, and be- 
came obedient even to the death of the cross, there- 
fore God highly exalted him;" Phil. ii. 8, 9. and he 
was " anointed" to the kingdom, " with the Holy 
Ghost and with power" immeasurable ; to the intent 
that he might bestow, in due proportion, the gifts of 
heaven on those whom he is not ashamed to call 
*' friends" and " brethren." And these gifts he did 
bestow on them, by the emission of the Spirit, soon 

1 



Commentary on Psalm xlv. 107 

after his ascension and inauguration. See the ap- 
plication of these last two verses to Christ, Heb. i. 
8,9. 

8. All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes , 
and cassia, out of the ivory palaces *, whereby they 
have made thee glad. 

From the throne, the sceptre, and the inaugura- 
tion, the Prophet passes on to the robes and palaces 
of the King of Glory, declaring, that as the perfumed 
garments of an earthly prince scatter through all the 
royal apartments a grateful fragrance, so from the 
glorious vestments of our High Priest and King is 
diffused the sweet savour of his heavenly graces, fill- 
ing those happy regions of joy and gladness, where 
he keeps his residence above, and, by the communi- 
cation of the Spirit, refreshing the faithful on earth 
with their odours. 

9. Kings' daughters were among thy honourable 
women, or, the splendour of thy train; upon thy 
right hand did stand the queen in gold of Ophir, 

Such being the divine beauty, and heavenly glory, 
of the blessed Person, whose nuptials the Prophet is 
now proceeding to describe, it is no wonder that, 
upon hearing of his fame innumerable converts, for- 
saking the vanities even of courts and kingdoms, 
should follow him, ambitious to have the honour of 
composing his train ; which in reality was the case, 
upon the publication of the Gospel. And, lo, at " the 
right hand" of the King, followed by this magnifi- 
cent procession, appears the church, the spouse of 
the Lamb, arrayed in the garments of righteousness 
and salvation, fitly compared, for their inestimable va- 
lue, and radiant brightness, to the " gold of Ophir." 

10. Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and in- 
cline thine ear ; forget also thine own people, and thy 
father's house ; 11. So shall the King greatly desire 

* That is palaces adorned, or inlaid, with ivory ; as " Eb«r 
atria vestit;" Lucan x. 119. Merrick. 

f6 



108 Commentary on Psalm XL v. 

thy beauty : for he is thy Lord; and worship thou 
him- 

This seemeth to be the voice of God, addressing 
the church to the following effect — O thou whom I 
have begotten unto a lively hope, by the resurrection 
of Jesus from the dead, and whom I have called out 
of the world, to become " the Lamb's wife," hearken 
diligently to my voice, consider attentively what I 
say, and be obedient to my direction: thou art now 
entering into a new state ; let old things pass away ; 
regard no more thy connexions with earth ; but let 
the love, and, if possible, the very memory, of thy 
former condition be obliterated from thy mind ; let 
all things belonging to the flesh die in thee: then 
shalt thou be truly acceptable and dear in his sight, 
who, having purchased and betrothed thee to himself, 
justly claims thy whole heart, thy undivided love, and 
thy unlimited service and adoration. 

12. And the daughter of Tyre shall be there with 
a gift; even the rich among the people shall entreat 
thy favour. 

The accession of the Gentiles, with their offerings 
and donations, to the church, is here predicted un- 
der the name of " Tyre," a city in the neighbour- 
hood of Palestine, formerly the glory of the nations, 
and mart of the world. See Isa. lv. and Rev. xxi. 

13. The Kings daughter is all glorious within: 
her clothing is of wrought gold. 

The church, in different respects, is sometimes 
called the spouse, sometimes the sister, and often, as 
here, the " daughter" of the heavenly King ; the con- 
nexion formed between them, uniting in itself every 
relation, and every affection. Her beauty, so great- 
ly desired and delighted in by Messiah, is spiritual ; 
it is the beauty of holiness; and her clothing is " the 
righteousness of saints." 1 Pet. iii. 3. Rev. 
xix. 8. 

14. She shall be brought unto the King in rai- 
ment of needle-work, or, embroidery: the virgins 



Commentary on Psalm xi v. 



109 



her companions that follow her shall be brought 
unto thee. 

The different graces of the faithful, all wrought in 
them by the same Spirit, compose that " divine 
embroidery," which adorns the wedding garment 
of the church, who is therein presented to the King-, 
attended by her bride-maids, after the nuptial man- 
ner. These are either the singles churches, or holy 
souls, that accede to and accompany the spouse ; 
unless we suppose, as some do, that the bride is the 
Israelitish church, and then the attendants will re- 
present the Gentiles. 

15. With gladness and rejoicing shall they be 
brought : they shall enter into the King's palace. 

The solemnization of this marriage between Christ 
and the church, produceth a jubilee upon earth, and 
causeth the streets of the heavenly Jerusalem to 
resound with hallelujahs. For this the angels tune 
their golden harps, while prophets, apostles, martyrs, 
and saints, fill up the universal chorus of " Blessing, 
and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that 
sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever 
and ever. 

16. Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, 
whrfm thou may est make princes in all the earth. 

In this verse the Prophet foretelleth the fruit that 
should spring from the glorious nuptials which he 
hath been celebrating. He assureth the spouse, that 
instead of her earthly kindred, whether Jewish or 
Pagan, which she was to leave for Christ, should 
arise an illustrious and royal progeny of believers, 
out of whom were to be chosen Christian kings to 
govern the world, and Christian bishops to preside 
in the church. The expression, " whom thou mayest 
make princes," may answer to that in the Revela- 
tions, ch. i. ver. 6. " And hath made us kings and 
priests unto God and his Father. So Mr. Merrick 
thinks, who beautifully turns the passage, in his 
poetical version, as follows — 



110 Commentary on Psalm XLVii. 



No more the Patriarchs of thy line 

In times long records chief shall shine ; 

Thy greater Sons, to empire born, 

Its future annals shall adorn, 

Thy pow'r deriv'd to them display, 

And stretch through earth their boundless sway. 

17. I will make thy name to be remembered in all 
generations : therefore shall the people praise thee 
for ever and ever. 

By inditing this divine marriage song, appointed 
to be sang in the congregation of the faithful from 
age to age, the Psalmist hath been, as he foresaw he 
should be, the blessed means of celebrating his Re- 
deemer's name, and inciting the nations of the world 
to do likewise ; nor will he cease to be so, while the 
xlvth Psalm continues to be sung in the church upon 
earth ; that is, while there remaineth a church upon 
earth to sing in. And we, who now do sing it, are 
witnesses of these things. 



PSALM XLVII. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Ascension Day, 

ARGUMENT. 

In this Psalm, appointed by the church to be used 
on Ascension-day, the Prophet, ] . calls the na- 
tions to celebrate so glorious a festival ; and that 
on account, 2. of Christ's power, and the migh- 
tiness of his kingdom ; 3. of his victories and tri- 
umphs, through the Gospel ; 4. of the inheritance 
prepared for his chosen, in the heavenly Canaan, 
by his own ascension thither ; which, 5. is de- 
scribed under images borrowed from the ascent of 



Commentary on Psalm XLVli. Ill 

the ark into the holy city and temple ; an occa- 
sion, on which the Psalm was probably composed. 
6, 7. He again and again exhorts all people to 
sing the praises of their God and King, and to 
sing with the understanding, as well as with the 
voice, 8, 9. The Psalm concludes with predict- 
ing the establishment of Christ's kingdom, and 
the conversion of the Gentile kings and nations 
to the faith. 

1. O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto 
God with the voice of triumph. 

The Prophet invites all nations to celebrate the 
festival of Messiah's exaltation, because all nations 
had a share in the benefits and blessings of that glo- 
rious day. God is to be worshipped with bodily, as 
well as spiritual worship : every " hand" should be 
lifted up to him who formed it, and every " month" 
should praise him who giveth breath for that purpose. 

2. For the Lord most high is terrible ; he is a 
great King over all the earth. 

The church celebrates the ascension of Christ, 
because then he was " highly exalted ;" then he be- 
came " terrible" to his enemies, all power in heaven 
and in earth being committed to him ; and then he 
began to display the excellent majesty of his universal 
kingdom, to which he was then inaugurated, being 
crowned " King of kings, and Lord of lords." 

3. He shall subdue the people under us, and the 
nations under our feet. 

The consequence of our Lord's ascension was the 
going forth of the all subduing Word, under the in- 
fluence and direction of which, the convinced and 
converted nations renounced their idols and their 
lusts, and bowed their willing necks to the yoke of 
Jesus. This is that great conquest, fore-showed by 
the victories of Joshua, David, and all the faithful 



112 Commentary on Psalm xlvii. 

heroes of old time, and foretold in language bor- 
rowed from their histories. 

4. He shall choose our inheritance for us, the ex- 
cellency of Jacob whom he loved. 

The land of Canaan, emphatically styled " that 
good land, and the glory of all lands," was the " ex- 
cellent inheritance" chosen for the sons of Jacob, 
and consigned to them, upon the expulsion of the 
idolatrous nations. But from that inheritance Israel 
also hath long since been expelled ; and Christians, 
by these words, are taught to look to " an inhe- 
ritance eternal, and incorruptible, and thatfadeth not 
away ;" to those happy and enduring mansions 
which the Son of God is gone to prepare for them 
that love him, and are beloved of him. 

5. God is gone up with a shout, the Lord with 
the sound of a trumpet. 

Literally, if applied to the ark, as bishop Patrick 
paraphrases the verse, " God is gone up, by the 
speeial token of his presence into that holy place, 
with shouts of joy and praise ; the Lord is gone up 
in a triumphant pomp, with the sound of the trumpet, 
and all other instruments of music." See 2 Sam. vi. 
5. 15. 2 Chron. r 2. 12, &c. Ps. cxxxii. 8, 9. 
But spiritually, as applied now by the Christian 
church, to the ascension of Christ into heaven, pre. 
figured by that of the ark into the temple — God 
incarnate is gone up into that holy place, not made 
with hands; the everlasting doors of heaven are 
opened, for the King of Glory to enter, and re-possess 
his ancient throne; there he is received by the united 
acclamations of the celestial armies, by that " shout," 
that voice of the archangel, and that " trump of 
God," which are to sound again, in the day when 
he shall " so come, in like manner, as he went into 
heaven 

* " Ascendit Deus" — Ascendit area ia Jerusalem cum 
eantu. Prophetice, Ascendtt Christus in coelura. Bossuet. 



Commentary on Psalm xlvii. 113 

6. Sing praises to God, sing praises : sing praises 
unto our King, sing praises. 7. For God is the 
King of all the earth : sing ye praises with under- 
standing. 

Who can contemplate the glorious triumph of 
human nature over its enemies, in the person of our 
King, risen and ascended, without finding himself 
constrained to break forth into joy, and to sing, 
with a thankful heart, and an elevated voice, the 
praises due unto his holy name ? These divine hymns 
were designed for that purpose. Let us therefore 
sing them, and let us sing them " with understand- 
ing ;" considering by whom they were indited, and 
of whom they treat ; reflecting, that the eternal 
Spirit is their author, and their subject the blessed 
Jesus. 

8. God reigneth over the heathen : God sitteth 
upon the throne of his holiness. 

We are never Suffered to forget, that the end of 
Messiah's exaltation to the right hand of the majesty 
in the heavens, was the conversion and salvation of 
the world ; so continually do the prophets and apos- 
tles delight to dwell upon that most interesting topic, 
the conversion of the " nations" to the Gospel of 
Christ. Why do we vainly fancy, that we belong 
to Him, unless his Spirit " reign" in our hearts by 
faith r 

9. The princes of the people are gathered together, 
even the people of the God of Abraham : for the 
shields of the earth belong unto God: he is greatly 
exalted. 

This verse plainly describeth the kings of the Gen- 
tiles as acceding to the church ; as becoming, with 
their subjects, through faith, M the people of the God 
of Abraham," and a part of the sacred peculium ; 
as submitting to God in Christ that power with 
which they were invested, as "shields of the earth," 
or protectors of their several kingdoms ; and as 



114 Commentary on Psalm xlvilt. 

bowing their sceptres to the cross of Jesus*. The 
sense of the verse, expressed in New Testament 
language, would be, " the kingdoms of this world 
are become the kingdoms of our Lord and his 
Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever." So 
let every nation be converted unto thee, O Lord ! 
and every king become thy son and servant; until 
all the world shall worship thee, sing of thee, and 
praise thy name ! 



PSALM XLVIII. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Whit-Sunday. 

ARGUMENT. 

This Psalm is one of those which by our church are 
appointed to be used on Whitsunday, because 
under images taken from the earthly city Jerusa- 
lem, newly rescued from her enemies by him who 
resided in the material temple on mount Zion, are 
celebrated, 1, 2, 3. the glory, the beauty, and the 
strength of the church Christian, that city and 
temple of Messiah ; who, [4 — 7. is described as 
breaking in pieces, and bringing to nothing, the 
opposition formed against her by the Heathen 
kings and emperors; on which account, 8 — 11. 
she expresseth her gratitude and joy ; 12 — 14. 

* This latter part of the verse is differently explained by the 
Rev. Mr. Merrick, in his poetical paraphrase of this Psalm— 

For he, whose hands, amid the skies, 

TV eternal sceptre wield, 
To earth's whole race his care applies, 
And o'er them spreads his shield. 



Commentary on Psalm xlviii. 115 
exhorting her people to contemplate, and transmit 
to posterity, an acccount of those wonderful works 
of God, the establishment and preservation of Ms 
church in the world ; for which she wishes all 
generations, after her example, to adore and 
praise his holy name, for ever and ever. 

1. Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised 
in the city of our God, in the mountain of his holi- 
ness. 

The Prophet preparing to celebrate the beauty and 
magnificence of the church, begins with setting forth 
the praises of her great Founder ; whose wisdom, 
mercy, and power, as they are conspicuous in all his 
works, so, more especially, in this the chief and 
crown of all; for which, his name can never be 
sufficiently extolled, by the inhabitants of the new 
J erusalem ; and by them it ought to be extolled, for 
ever and ever. 

2. Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole 
earth is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the 
city of the great King. 

How " beautiful" is the holy and heavenly Zion, 
or the Christian church ; how truly is she " the joy 
of the whole earth," by the glad tidings which her 
ministers continually publish ; how properly is this 
Jerusalem styled, <c the city of the great King!" 

3. God is known in her palaces for a refuge. 
The great Founder of the church is also her pro- 
tector and defender ; the dependence of the new Je- 
rusalem, like that of the old, is not in man, or in the 
arm of flesh, but in the God who resideth in the 
midst of her. For, surely, unless he kept the holy 
city, the watchmen in the towers would wake but in 
vain. 

4. For, lo, the kings were assembled, they passed 
by together. 

Never were the power and malice of earthly 



116 Commentary on Psalm xlviii. 

princes more violently bent to hinder the building of 
Jerusalem, or to pull down what was already built, 
than they were to prevent the edification of the 
church, and to root up its foundations. But the 
event with regard to the latter, was the same which 
had often happened, in the case of the former. 

5. They saw it, and so they marvelled ; they were 
troubled, and hasted away. (y. Fear took hold upon 
them there, and pain, as of a woman in travail. 

The potentates of the world saw the miracles of 
the apostles, the courage and constancy of the mar- 
tyrs, and the daily increase of the church, notwith- 
standing all their persecutions ; they beheld with 
astonishment the rapid progress of the faith through 
the Roman empire ; they called upon their gods, 
but their gods could not help themselves ; idolatry 
expired at the foot of the victorious cross, and 
the power which supported it became Christian. 

7. Thou breakest the ships of TarsJush with the 
east wind. 

In the foregoing verse, the consternation amongst 
the enemies of the church was compared to the hor- 
rors of a travailing woman ; here it is likened to the 
apprehensions of despairing mariners. Nor indeed 
can any thing in nature more fitly represent the over- 
throw of Heathenism by the Spirit of the Gospel, than 
the wreck of a fleet of ships in a storm at sea. Both 
are effected by the mighty power of God *. 

8. As we have heard, so have we seen in the city 
of the Lord of hosts, in the city of our God : God 
will establish it for ever. 

* Sensus est; qualis ventus vehemens content naves magni 
maris, talis est Dei vis tuentis Jerusalem, et hostilem exer- 
eitum dissipantis. Bossuet. Illustrations of this kind are 
sometimes introduced, by the sacred writers, with the mark 
of comparison ; and frequently, as here, without it. The 
meaning evidently is, that as the east wind shatters in pieces 
the ships of Tarshish, so the divine power struck the Heathen 
kings with terror and astonishment. 



Commentary on Psalm xlviii. 117 

The church heard, by the prophets, of the future 
birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Mes- 
siah ; of the effusion of the Spirit, and her own en- 
largement, establishment, and preservation, in the 
Gentile world. These predictions, which she had so 
often " heard," she hath " seen" accomplished, even 
unto this day *; and therefore doubts not of God's 
continuing his favour and protection to the end of 
time. 

9. We have thought, or we wait in silence and 
patience for thy loving kindness, O God, in the midst 
of thy temple. 

Contemplation of all the wondrous works which 
the Lord our God hath wrought for us, produces 
faith in his promises, and resignation to his will : and 
he that, with these dispositions, waits for God's mer- 
cies, in God's house, shall not wait in vain. 

10. According to thy name, O God, so is thy 
praise unto the ends of the earth : thy right hand is 
full of righteousness. 

Wherever the name of God is known, and his 
works are declared, there the sacrifice of praise must 
needs be offered to him, by men, who are made sen- 
sible of his mercies towards them : and the day is 
coming, when all the world shall be forced to ac- 
knowledge, that his " right hand is full of righteous- 
ness," and his judgments are just. 

11. Let mount Zion rejoice, let the daughters of 
Judah be glad, because of thy judgments. 

The church, and all her children, are exhorted to 

* " Sicut audivimus/' — Prophetia Isaiae videtur hie notari ; 
sensusque est : sicut audivimus ab Isaia prophetatum, fore ut 
obsidio mirabiliter solveretur,ac Serinacherabi dux Rabsaces, 
ejusque exercitus csederetur, sic irapletum vidimus. Isa. 
xxxvii. 21. 2 Reg. xix. 20. Qua figura ccelestis Jerusalem 
incolae et ipsi canunt, " sicut audivimus," ex auditu fidei, 
Gal. iii. 25. " sic vidimus," jam sublato velo, atque aperta 
Dei facie. " Deus fundavit earn nihil habet metuendum, 
tanto exempta periculo. Prophetice, de Ecclesia fundata 
super petram, ideoque inconcussa. Matt. xvi. 18. Bossuet. 



118 Commentary on Psalm xlviii. 

rejoice, with joy unspeakable and full of glory, on 
account of the manifestation of divine power, on her 
behalf, against her enemies. Thus, at the fall of the 
mystic Babylon, it is said — " Rejoice over her, thou 
heaven, and ye holy apostles, and prophets, for God 
hath avenged you on her.'* Rev. xviii. 20. 

12. Walk about Zion, and go round about her : 
tell the towers thereof, 13. Mark ye well her bul- 
warks, consider her palaces ; that ye may tell it to 
the generations following. 

Christians are here enjoined to contemplate, again 
and again, continually, the fabric of the spiritual 
Jerusalem, wonderfully raised, and as wonderfully 
preserved ; to consider attentively the parts designed 
for use, for strength, for ornament ; that they may be 
able to instruct posterity in the nature and history 
of this holy building, and in their duty of forwarding 
and defending the same, from generation to genera- 
tion. 

14- For this God is our God for ever and ever : 
he will be our guide even unto death. 

Let the world worship whom or what it will, we 
worship none other but Him who, by his Spirit, 
founded, and, by his power, preserveth the church ; 
who, by that Spirit, " guideth" us through life, and 
by that power, will enable us to overcome " death*;" 
that so we may rejoice and triumph for evermore, as 
citizens of the city of God, and subjects of the King 
of Glory. 

* " This God will be oar God to all eternity, and (by that 
pewer which he has already exerted in our protection) will 
conduct us through life with safety/' Merkick. 



Commentary on Psalm Li. 119 



PSALM LL 

To be used in the Commination on 
Ash Wednesday, 

ARGUMENT. 

In this Psalm, composed upon a sad occasion, but 
too well known, we have a perfect model of peni- 
tential devotion. The royal supplicant, robed in 
sackcloth, and crowned with ashes, entreats for 
mercy, 1, 2. from a consideration of his own 
misery, and of the divine goodness ; 3. from that 
of his confession ; 4. of God's sole right to judge 
him; 5. laments the corruption of his nature; but, 
6. without pleading it as an excuse ; 7. prays for 
Gospel remission, in legal terms ; 8. for spiritual 
joy and comfort ; 9, 10. for pardoning and cleans- 
ing grace ; 11, 12. for strength and perseverance, 
that he may, 13. instruct and convert others ; 14, 
15. deprecates the vengeance due to blood ; 16, 
17. beseeches God to accept an evangelical sacri- 
fice ; and 18, 19. concludes with a prayer for the 
church. 

1. Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy 
loving kindness ; according unto the multitude of 
thy tender mercies, blot out my transgressions. 

The penitent's first ground for hope of pardon, is 
his own misery, and the divine mercy, which rejoiceth 
to relieve that misery. The riches, the power, and 
the glory of a kingdom, can neither prevent nor re- 
move the torment of sin, which puts the monarch 
and the beggar upon a level. Every transgression 
leaves behind it a guilt, and a stain ; the account 



120 Commentary on Psalm LI. 



between God and the sinner is crossed by the blood 
of the great propitiatory sacrifice, which removes the 
former ; and the soul is cleansed by the Holy Spirit, 
which takes out the latter. 

2. Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and 
cleanse me from my sin. 

The soul that is sensible of her pollution, fears she 
can never be sufficiently purified from it ; and there- 
fore prays, yet again and again, continually, for more 
abundant grace, to make and to keep her holy. 

3. For I acknowledge my transgressions, and my 
sin is ever before me. 

The penitent's second plea for mercy is, that he 
doth not deny, excuse, or palliate his fault, but con- 
fesses it openly and honestly, with all its aggrava- 
tions, truly alleging, that it haunts him night and 
day, causing his conscience incessantly to reproach 
him with his base ingratitude to a good and gracious 
Father. 

4. Against, or, to thee, thee only, have I sinned, 
and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest, 
or, therefore thou wilt ,be justified when thou speakest, 
and be clear when thou judgest. 

A third reason why the penitent sues for mercy at 
the hand of God is, because God alone certainly 
knows, and is always able to punish, the sins of men. 
David sinned " against" many ; as against Uriah, 
whom he slew; against Bathsheba, whom he cor- 
rupted ; and against all the people, to whom he be- 
came the cause of much offence and scandal. But 
the sin was committed in secret; and if it had not 
been so, he, as king, had no superior, or judge, in 
this matter, but God only ; who, being able to con- 
vict the offender, as he did, by the prophet Nathan, 
would assuredly be justified in the sentence he should 
pronounce. And he will appear to be so in his de- 
terminations at the last day, when he will surprise 
the wretched unthinking sinner, with a declaration 
similar to that which he made, by his prophet, to the 

8 



Commentary on Psalm Li. 121 



royal offender, 2 Sam. xii. 12. " Thou didst it se- 
cretly ; but I will do this thing before all Israel, and 
before the sun, 

5. Behold I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin 
did my mother conceive me. 

The divine mercy is implored by the penitent, 
fourthly, because that alone can dry up the fountain 
of original corruption, from which the streams of 
actual transgression derive themselves ; and which is 
here only lamented as their cause, not alleged as 
their excuse ; seeing, that the greater our danger is 
of falling, the greater should be our care to stand. 
David was the offspring of the marriage- bed, which 
is declared to be " honourable and undented." No 
more, therefore, can be intended here, than that a 
creature begotten by a sinner, and formed in the 
womb of a sinner, cannot be without that taint which 
is hereditary to every son and daughter of Adam 
and Eve *, 

6. Behold thou desirest truth in the inward parts, 
Heb. the reins; and in the hidden part thou s halt 
make, or, hast made, me to know wisdom. 

The force of " Behold,'' is — " It is too plain ; I 
feel it but too sensibly ; the punishment I suffer is 
evidence sufficient, that thou art not contented with 
a superficial appearance of goodness : thou lovest 
truth and sincerity in the bottom of the heart." — ■ 
This God was now teaching him, by the correction 
he made him suffer. The punishment inflicted 
tended to give him a right understanding of things, 
and to work it deep into him. Mudge. 

7. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean, 
wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. 

* And so much must surely be intended, as the learned 
Bossuetobserveth — Numquid David de adulterio natus erat? 
De Jesse viro justo natus erat, etconjuge ipsius. Quid ergo 
se dicit in iniquitate conceptum, nisi quia suscepit personam 
humani generis, et attendit omnium vincula propaginem 
mortis, originem iniquitatis advertit? 

G 



122 Commentary on Psalm Li. 

He therefore petitioneth, in this verse, for the pu- 
rification which cometh from God only, through the 
one great propitiatory sacrifice, by the Holy Spirit ; 
and which was foreshown, under the law, by the ce- 
remony of sprinkling the unclean person with a 
bunch of* hyssop," dipped in the "water of sepa- 
ration." This rite is described, Numb. xix. and ex- 
plained, Heb. xi. 13, 14. " If the blood of bulls 
and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling 
the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh ; 
how much more shall the blood of Christ, who, 
through the eternal Spirit, offered himself without 
spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works 
to serve the living God !" From the latter part of 
the verse we learn, that, by grace and mercy, the 
pardoned penitent is arrayed in garments no less 
pure and splendid than those of innocence itself. 

8. Make me to hear joy and gladness, that the 
bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. 

Next to the blessing of forgiveness, is to be de- 
sired that joy and comfort in the conscience which 
forgiveness only can inspire : the effect of this, in re- 
pairing the vigour of the spirit, decayed through 
sorrow and anguish, is compared to setting broken 
hones, and restoring them again to perfect strength. 
At the resurrection of the body, this petition will be 
granted in a literal sense, when the " bones," that 
are mouldered into dust, shall " rejoice, and flourish 
as an herb." Isaiah Ixvi, 14. 

9. Hide thy face from my sins; and blot out all 
mine iniquities. 

The soul, still restless and uneasy, reiterates her 
request, that God would not only cease to behold her 
iniquity for the present, as a man who turneth away 
his face from a writing, but that he would not be- 
hold it more, as a man who blotteth out what is writ- 
ten, so that it can never be read again. 

10. Create in me a clean heart, O God ; and re- 
new a right, or, constant, spirit within me. 



Commentary on Psalm lt. 123 

The purification and renovation of the heart and 
spirit of a man is a work to which that power only is 
equal which, in the beginning, created all things, 
and, in the end, will create all things new. " A 
right spirit is renewed within us," when the affections 
turn from the world to God, and charity takes the 
place of concupiscence. 

11 . Cast me not away from thy presence : and 
take not thy holy Spirit from me. 

The soul that is truly penitent, dreads nothing but 
the thought of being rejected from the " presence," 
and deserted by the " Spirit" of God. This is the 
most deplorable and irremediable effect of sin : but it 
is one, that in general perhaps is the least considered 
and regarded of all others. 

12. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and 
uphold me with thy free, or, princely, or, liberal, 
Spirit. 

David prayeth to God to restore to him the un- 
speakable joy of that salvation which, as a Prophet, 
he had so often contemplated, and celebrated in his 
divine compositions ; he prayeth also to be preserved 
and continued in that state of salvation, by the Spirit 
of God, which might enable him to act as became a 
Prophet and a king, free from base desires and en- 
slaving lusts. 

13. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways, and 
sinners shall be converted unto thee. 

He that would employ his abilities, his influence, 
and his authority, in the reformation of others, must 
take care to reform himself, before he enters upon 
the work. " When thou art converted," said Christ 
to St. Peter, " strengthen thy brethren:" Luke 
xxii. 32. The history of David has H taught" us 
many useful lessons ; such as, the frailty of man, the 
danger of temptation, the torment of sin, the nature 
and efficacy of repentance, the mercy and the judg- 
ments of God, &c. &c. by which many " sinners" 
have in all ages since been " converted," and many 



124 



Commentary on Psalm Li. 



more will be converted, so long as the Scriptures 
shall be read, and the 51st Psalm recited in the 
church. 

14. Deliver me from blood-guiltiness, O God, thou 
God of my salvation : and my tongue shall sing 
aloud of thy righteousness. 

The unhappy criminal entreats, in this verse, for 
the divine help and deliverance, as if he not only 
heard the voice of innocent blood crying from the 
ground, but as if he saw the murdered Uriah coming 
upon him for vengeance, like an armed man. If he 
can but obtain the pardon of this sin, he promises to 
publish to all the world the righteousness of God, 
who justifieth sinners, and showeth mercy to the 
penitent; though he must, at the same time, publish 
likewise his own heinous and horrid wickedness. 

15. O Lord, open thou my lips, and my mouth 
shall show forth thy praise. 

The mouth which sin hath closed, can only be 
opened by pardon : and to show this, he who came, 
conferring pardon, caused the tongue of the dumb 
to speak, and to sing praises to the Lord God of 
Israel. Our church, with great propriety, daily 
maketh her prayer, in the words of this verse, before 
she entereth upon that part of her service, which 
consisteth of praise and thanksgiving. 

16. For thou desirest not sacrifice, else would 
[ give it : thou delightest not in burnt offerings. 
17. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit : a 
broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not 
despise. 

David, in this Psalm, is so evangelical, and has 
his thoughts so fixed upon Gospel remission, that he 
considers the Levitical sacrifices as already abolished, 
for their insufficiency to take away sin ; affirming 
them to be (as indeed they were) nothing, in the 
sight of God, if compared with the sacrifice of the 
body of sin, offered by contrition and mortification, 
through faith in Him who, in the fulness of time, 



Commentary on Psalm LI. 125 

was to die unto sin once, that we, together with him, 
might for ever live unto God. 

18. Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion: build 
thou the walls of Jerusalem. 

The king forgets not to ask mercy for his people, as 
well as for himself; that so neither his own nor their 
sins might prevent either the building and flourishing 
of the earthly Jerusalem, or, what was of infinitely 
greater importance, the promised blessing of Mes- 
siah, who was to descend from him, and to rear the 
walls of the new Jerusalem. And thus it ought to 
be the fervent prayer of every man, especially if he 
be placed in any exalted station, ecclesiastical or 
civil, that no sins by him committed, may any way 
prejudice others, or obstruct the edification of the 
church. 

19. Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices 
of righteousness, with burnt offering^ and whole 
burnt offering ; then shall they offer bullocks upon 
thine altar. \ 

This had its literal accomplishment, when Jerusa- 
lem was finished ; when the temple was erected on 
mount Sion ; and when the Lord graciously vouch- 
safed to accept the sacrifices, there offered on his 
holy altars, by king Solomon, at the head of his faith- 
ful and devout people. It is spiritually true in the 
Christian church, where the substance of all the 
Mosaic types and shadows is offered and presented 
to the Father by the Prince of Peace, at the head of 
the Israel of God. And it will be eternally verified 
in the kingdom of heaven, where the sacrifices of 
righteousness and love, of praise and thanksgiving, 
will never cease to be offered to him that sitteth on 
the throne, by the church triumphant in glory. 



g 3 



126 Commentary on Psalm Liv. 



PSALM LIV. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Good Friday. 

ARGUMENT. 

David, as it has been supposed, when betrayed by 
the Ziphites, and surrounded by Saul, 1, 2. com- 
mitteth his cause, and preferreth his prayer to 
God ; 3. complaineth of his cruel treatment ; 4, 5. 
expresseth his assurance of the divine favour, and 
the destruction of his enemies. 6, 7. Being deli- 
vered from his danger, he blesseth and praiseth 
God. See the history, 1 Sam. xxiii. The appli- 
cation to Christ, and to Christians, is plain and 
easy ; for which reason, our church hath appointed 
this Psalm to be read on Good Friday. 

1. Save me, O God, by thy name, and judge me 
by thy strength 2. Hear my prayer, O God ; 
give ear to the words of my mouth. 

Happy the man, to whom, in the day of trouble, 
the W name of the Lord is a strong tower," into 
which " he runneth, and is safe :" Prov. xviii. 10. 
Happy the man, that can with an holy confidence, 
commit his cause to the judgment and determination 
of God, and expect redress from the Almighty. His 
prayer mounteth up to heaven, and returneth not 
without a blessing. 

3. For strangers are risen up against me, and 
oppressors seek after my soul : they have not set 
God before them. 

The Ziphites, though David's countrymen, acted 
the part of " strangers," or " aliens," in seeking to 
deliver him up to his unjust and cruel enemy. Such 
a part did the whole Jewish nation act towards their 



Commentary on Psalm Liv. 127 

anointed Prince and Saviour, when they actually 
delivered him over to the Roman power. And the 
church frequently meeteth with such treatment at the 
hands of her children, as she had reason to expect 
only from " strangers to the covenant of promise." 
Something like this always happens, when men, in- 
stead of setting God, set the world before their 
eyes. 

4. Behold, God is mine helper ; the Lord is with 
them that uphold my soul. 5. He shall reward evil 
unto mine enemies : cut them off> or, thou shalt cut 
them off, in thy truth. 

In all dangers and difficulties, whether temporal 
or spiritual, the faithful sons and servants of God fix 
their eyes upon their heavenly Father, and gracious 
Master : they have recourse to the divine promises, 
the performance of which they know to be certain, 
and therefore can foresee and foretel the destruction 
of their enemies. Thus David, and a greater than 
David, supported themselves in their troubles ; and 
the church, with her children, must do likewise. 

6. I will freely sacrifice unto thee ; I will praise 
thy name, O Lord, for it is good. 7. For he hath 
delivered me out of all my trouble : and mine eye 
hath seen his desire, Heb. mine eye hath looked, 
upon mine enemies. 

Saul, under the direction of the Ziphites, having 
encompassed David on every side, was suddenly 
called off' to defend his country from an invasion of 
the Philistines ; by which means David escaped, and 
u : beheld his enemies" retreating. 1 Sam. xxiii. 27. 
For this event he offers the sacrifice of a heart freed 
from fear, and praises the name of his great Deli- 
verer. Christians should follow his example : they 
should consider, how great things God hath done for 
them, and should never suffer the voice of praise 
and thanksgiving to cease in the church of the 
redeemed. Beautiful and emphatical will these two 
concluding verses appear, when conceived as pro- 



128 Commentary on Psalm lvii. 

ceeding from the mouth of our Lord, upon his resur- 
rection. And we hope one day to repeat them on 
a like occasion, saying-, each in his own person ; * 8 I 
will freely sacrifice unto thee ; I will praise thy 
name, O Lord, for it is good. For he hath deli- 
vered me out of all my trouble, and mine eye hath 
looked upon mine enemies. 



PSALM LVII. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Easter-day. 

ARGUMENT. 

This Psalm is said to have been composed by David, 
on occasion of his escape from Saul, in the cave 
atEngedi. See 1 Sam. xxiv. 3. And the church, 
by her appointment of it as one of the proper 
Psalms for Easter-day, hath instructed us to trans- 
fer the ideas to the resurrection of Christ from the 
grave. The Psalm containeth, J. — 3. an act of 
faith in the promises ; 4. a description of grievous 
sufferings ; 5. a prayer for the exaltation of God's 
glory, which is repeated again at the conclusion ; 
6. a prediction of judgment on the adversary; 
7 — 10. a strain of the highest exaltation and 
jubilee. 

1. Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto 
me, for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow 
of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these ca- 
lamities be overpast. 

David, encompassed by his enemies at Engedi, 
putteth up this prayer to God ; the same prayer we 



Commentary on Psalm lvii. 129 

may suppose to have been used by our blessed Lord, 
when drawing near to the grave, and gate of death : 
and the church ever continueth the use of it, until 
she be delivered from the bondage of corruption. In 
the mean time, she teacheth her children to put 
themselves, living and dying, under the protection 
of him who is always ready to " to gather them, as a 
hen gathereth her chickens under her wings." There 
they may rest in peace and security. 

2. J will cry unto God most high; unto God that 
performeth all things for me. 

David cried unto God, and was delivered out of 
the hand of Saul; the Son of David cried unto God, 
and was delivered from the power of the grave: the 
saints on earth cry unto God, and shall be delivered 
out of their troubles ; the souls under the altar in 
heaven cry unto God, Rev. vi. 10. and shall obtain 
a reunion with their bodies. Thus God " performeth 
all things for us," as well as for David. 

3. He shall send from heaven, and save me from 
the reproach of him that would swallow me up. God 
shall send forth his mercy and his truth. 

We have all an enemy, who would " swallow us 
up; and we look for the manifestation of the divine 
mercy and truth" from " heaven," for the salvation 
of our souls, and the redemption of our bodies. A 
grand specimen of this manifestation was exhibited 
to the world, on that glorious morning when Jesus 
Christ rose from the dead* 

4. My soul is among lions : and / lie even among 
them that are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose 
teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp 
sword. 

The fiercest of beasts, the most devouring of 
elements, and the sharpest of military weapons, are 
selected, to represent the power and fury of David's 
enemies. How much stronger, and more furious, 
were the enemies of Christ, who, in the day of his 
passion, resembled Daniel in the lions' den, the three 

GO 



130 Commentary on Psalm lvii. 

children in the fiery furnace, and who stood alone, 
exposed to the assaults of men and evil spirits ! 

5. Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens ; let 
thy glory be above all the earth. 

God is exalted and glorified among men by the dis- 
play of mercy and judgment, in the salvation of his 
children from the hands of their enemies. But chiefly 
was he exalted, when, having raised up his Son Jesus, 
he set him at his own right hand, far above all princi- 
palities and powers, and every thing that is named in 
heaven and in earth. This was the great exaltation, 
prefigured, foretold, and incessantly prayed for, in 
the ancient church. 

6. They have prepared a net for my steps ; my soul 
is bowed down : they have digged a pit before me, 
into the midst whereof they are \ fallen, or, shall fall, 
themselves. 

David compares himself, 1 Sam. xxvi. 20. to a 
bird upon the mountains, which the fowler endea- 
voureth to hunt into the nets and snares set up and 
prepared for its destruction. So was the most inno- 
cent dove, the holy Jesus, persecuted by the Jews, 
until they had driven him into the snares of death, 
and laid him low in the grave. But the enemies of 
both received, in the end, the due reward of their 
deeds, and " fell into the pit they had digged." 

7. My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed ; 
I will sing and give praise. 

At the prospect of approaching deliverance, the 
Prophet, in the person of Christ, declareth his heart 
to be fixed and established, steadfast and unmove- 
able in the midst of trouble, even then preparing to 
celebrate its future enlargement with songs of praise. 

8. Awake up, my glory; awake, psaltery and 
harp : I myself will awake early, or, awaken the 
morning. 

For this purpose, he calls upon his tongue, with 
all his instruments of music, all the organs of the 
body and affections of the soul, to unite their powers 



Commentary on Psalm LVii. 181 



in sweetest harmony and concert, and to awaken the 
sluggish morning with the voice of melody, sounding 
forth the glories of redemption. Thus should the 
morning be ever celebrated, on which Christ " arose 
from the dead, and became the first fruits of them 
that slept." 

9. I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people ; 
1 will sing unto thee among the nations. 10. For 
thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth 
unto the clouds. 

The resurrection of J esus from the grave, fore- 
shadowed in the deliverance of David from the hand 
of Saul, was a transaction which caused the heavens, 
and all the powers therein, to extol the mercy and 
the truth of God. The nations of the earth, whose 
are the benefits and the blessings of that transaction, 
are, therefore, bound evermore to make it the subject 
of their praises and thanksgivings; which is done by 
the members of our church, every Easter-day, in the 
words of this very Psalm. 

11. Be thou exalted , O God, above the heavens; 
let thy glory be above all the earth. 

Even so, be thou still exalted, O blessed Jesu! 
above the heavens, while the angels sing their halle- 
lujahs on high ; and let thy glory be above all the 
earth, while, in psalms, and hymns, and spiritual 
songs, the congregations of the redeemed incessantly 
magnify thy salvation below. 

The church triumphant, and the church below, 
In songs of praise their present union show: 
Their joys are full, our expectation long; 
In life we differ, but we join in song". 
Angels and we, assisted by this art, 
May sing together, though we dwell apart. 

Waller on Divine Poesie. 



g6 



]32 



Commentary on Psalm Lxvi. 



PSALM LXVI. 

To be used as a Thanksgiving after a Storm. 
ARGUMENT. 

In this Psalm the Prophet, 1, 2. exciteth all the 
world to sing the praises of God ; 3, 4. the power 
and universality of his kingdom ; 5 — 12. the de- 
liverance of the church from various afflictions 
and temptations; for which, 13 — 15. we are to 
offer the sacrifices which had been vowed ; 
16 — 19. to declare the mercies and loving kind- 
nesses of the Lord towards us; and, 20. to bless 
his holy name continually. 

1. Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands, or, 
all the earth: 2. Sing forth the honour of his name; 
make his praise glorious. 

" The holy church, throughout all the world, is 
here called upon to lift up her voice, like the jubilee 
trumpet of old, in thanksgiving ; to celebrate that 
name, which is above every name ; and to make the 
praise of Jestjs glorious, both by word and deed ; 
that so others, hearing our voices,- and seeing our 
works, may be led to glorify him, in like manner. 

3 Say unto God, How terrible art thou in thy 
works! through the greatness of thy power shall 
thine enemies submit themselves unto thee. 

The subjects proposed are the various and awful 
manifestations of divine " power;" of that power 
which made, and which continues to support, the 
world; which overthrows, and raises up, empires; 
which subverted the kingdom of Satan, established 
that of Christ, and caused its enemies either to re- 
linquish, or dissemble, their hostility. Happy the 

8 



Commentary on Psalm LXVl. 133 



man, whose heart and affections unfeignedly " sub- 
mit themselves'' to the sceptre of Messiah ! 

4. All the earth shall worship thee, and shall ting 
unto thee ; they shall sing to thy name. 

What David spake in the future, the church now 
speaketh in the present, tense — " All the earth doth 
worship thee, the Father everlasting — Day by day 
we magnify thee ; and we worship thy name ever 
world without end." A day is coming when this 
shall be the case, in an unlimited sense of the words ; 
when Jews and Gentiles, quick and dead, heaven 
and earth, shall compose one perfect and truly har- 
monious choir. 

5. Come, and see the works of God : he is terrible 
in his doing toward the children of men. 6. He turn- 
ed the sea imto dry land: they went through the 
flood on foot: there did we rejoice in him. 

The Prophet, after inviting men to contemplate 
" the works of God," sets before them, for that pur- 
pose, two great miracles wrought for Israel,- namely, 
the division of the Red Sea, and that of the river 
Jordan ; by the former they escaped Egypt, hy the 
latter they entered Canaan. Under these two figu- 
rative transactions, the Christian church beholds, 
and, in the words which describe them, she cele- 
brates, two corresponding works of mercy wrought 
for her; namely, the deliverance of her children 
from the dominion of sin, by the waters of baptism : 
and their admission into the kingdom of heaven, 
through the grave and gate of death. If the Israel- 
ites rejoiced in God their Saviour, for the former 
blessings, much more, surely, ought we so to do, for 
the latter. 

7. He ruleth hy his power for ever ; his eyes be* 
hold the nations : let not the rebellious, or, the re- 
bellious shall not, exalt themselves. 

The uncontrollable sovereignty, and superintend- 
ing providence, of our God and King, are topics on 
which we should ever delight to dwell. Establish, 



134 Commentary on Psalm lxvi. 

O Lord, thy kingdom within us, and suffer not 
our " rebellious" passions to " exalt themselves" 
against it. 

8. O bless our God, ye people^ and make the voice 
of his praise to be heard : 9. Who holdeth our soul 
in life, and suffer eth not our feet to be moved. 

But chiefly are we bound to f bless" and " praise" 
God, for that goodness and mercy, by which our 
feet are turned back from the ways of death, placed 
in the path of " life,'' and enabled to walk therein, 
without falling into perdition; until, having finished 
our pilgrimage in the world, we lie down in peace, 
and our flesh resteth sweetly in hope. 

10. For thou, O God, hast proved us: thou hast 
tried us, as silver is tried. 

Notwithstanding the mercy of God, and the salva- 
tion wrought for us, we are here taught to expect 
affliction and tribulation ; which indeed are often- 
times necessary ; for, having in our composition a 
mixture of the earth from whence we came, with a 
base alloy of concupiscence, we stand as much in 
need of adversity, as metals, in like circumstances, 
do of the fire, to refine and purify our tempers. 
Try us, O God ; but enable us to stand the trial ! 

11. Thou broughtest us into the net: thou laidst 
affliction upon our loins. 12. Thou hast caused 
men to ride over our heads ; we went through fire 
and water; but thou broughtest us into a wealthy 
place. 

Various calamities are here mentioned, which God 
suffers to fall upon his people. As first, their being 
(< brought into the net/' or ensnared and taken cap- 
tive by their enemies, whom they had not power to 
resist or escape. Secondly, " affliction upon the 
loins," or hard servitude under heavy burdens. 
Thirdly, " men riding over their heads," or the ma- 
nifold oppressions of persecuting tyrants, trampling 
them under their feet, like war-horses in the day of 
battle. Fourthly, passing " through fire and water/ 



Commentary on Psalm LXVi. 135 

or troubles of different and contrary kinds, though 
alike deadly and destructive. But he who brought 
Israel from among the brick-kilns of Egypt and 
through the waters of the Red Sea, and the river 
Jordan, into the promised rest, will bring us safely 
through every fiery trial, and through the waves of a 
troublesome world, to the land of everlasting peace 
and comfort. 

13. J will go into thine house with burnt- offerings ; 
I will pay thee my vows, 14. Which my lips have ut- 
tered, and my mouth hath spoken, when 1 was in 
trouble, 15. I will offer unto thee burnt sacrifices 
of failings, with the incense of rams ; I will offer 
bullocks with goats. 

Under the Gospel, the obligation of " going to 
the house of God," and there u paying vows," 
still continues ; but the " offerings" are changed. 
The legal sacrifices have been abolished by the obla- 
tion of the body of Christ once for all. This obla- 
tion is commemorated in the eucharist ; at the cele- 
bration of which, we now offer up our prayers and 
praises, ourselves, our souls and bodies, a reasonable, 
holy, and lively sacrifice, acceptable to God, in the 
name and through the merits of the Redeemer. 
These offerings, if vowed in the seasons of sickness 
and sorrow, should be paid in the days of health and 
gladness, 

16. Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I 
will declare what he hath done for my soul. 

Every man should be ready, like David, to cele- 
brate the mercies of God vouchsafed to him. It is 
a debt of gratitude to his Saviour, who is glorified : 
and a debt of charity to his brethren, who are edified 
thereby ; provided only, that it be done with sobriety 
and humility. 

17. / cried unto him with my mouth, and he was 
extolled with my tongue. 

The mean by which we obtain salvation, is faith ; 
which, as it showeth us both our disease and our 



136 Commentary on Psalm lxvii. 



physician, inclineth us to pray to the latter for a cure 
of the former. Prayer is one gift of God ; and every 
other gift is obtained by it. 

18. If J regard iniquity in my hearty the LORD 
will not hear me. 

The prayer, which is " heard," is the prayer of 
the penitent, heartily grieved and wearied with sin, 
hating, and longing to be delivered from it. For 
God heareth not hypocrites, who, while they out- 
wardly disavow, yet inwardly <e regard" and cherish 
" iniquity ;" from which every one, who nameth the 
name of Christ, ought to depart. 

19. But verily God hath heard me ; he hath at~ 
tended to the voice of my prayer. 

David was heard, when God delivered him from 
hi s enemies, and set him on the throne of Israel : 
Christ was heard, when God raised him from the 
dead, and exalted him to the right hand of the 
Majesty in the heavens : and every man is heard, 
when God raises him from sin to righteousness, as an 
earnest of his future resurrection from dust to glory. 
Let every such man praise the Lord, and say, with 
David, in the last verse of our Psalm, 

20. Blessed be God, who hath not turned away 
my prayer, nor his mercy from me. 



PSALM LXVII. 

To be used at Evening Prayer ; and at the 
Solemnization of Matrimony. 

Argument. 

In this evangelical Psalm, the Israelitish church is 
introduced as partly praying for, and partly fore- 
telling the advent of Christ, and the conversion of 
the nations, with the joy and gladness that should 



Commentary on Psalm LXYII. 137 

be consequent thereupon. The Christian church 
now uses, and will continue to use, the Psalm with 
propriety, until the fulness of the Gentiles shall 
be come in, the conversion of the Jews effected, 
and Christ shall appear the second time, finally to 
accomplish the salvation of his chosen. 

1. God be merciful unto us, and bless us ; and 
cause his face to shine upon us. 

The Israelitish church, by the mouth of the Pro- 
phet, expresseth her ardent desire after Messiah's 
advent, and appearance in the flesh; she prayeth, 
that God would be " merciful unto her," as he had 
promised ; that, by so doing, he would " bless'' her 
with the blessings of pardon and peace, of grace and 
glory ; and in one word, that he would " cause his 
face to shine upon her" by the rising of the Sun 
of Righteousness, making her to behold the glory of 
God in the face of Jesus Christ, reviving her with 
the glad tidings of the Gospel, and enlightening her 
with the light of salvation. 

2. That thy way may be known upon earth, thy 
saving health among all nations. 

Nor was she studious, as her degenerate children 
have since been, to confine the favour of heaven 
within her own pale. If she had a good wish for 
herself, she had one likewise for others ; and there- 
fore prayed, that the il way" to life eternal might be 
" known," not in Jewry alone, but over all the 
" earth ;" and that the virtues of that salutary medi- 
cine, which was able to restore health and vigour to 
the diseased and languishing spirits of men, might 
be published " among all nations." 

3. Let the people praise thee, O God ; let all the 
people praise thee. 

As if she had said — Hitherto, indeed, blessed 
Lord, thou hast thought fit to make me the guardian 
and keeper of that great deposit, thy true religion. 



138 Commentary on Psalm lxvii. 

from which the* nations revolted, and fell; but the 
time is coming, when, by the Gospel of thy dear 
Son, they shall again be called to the knowledge of 
thee. Thy glory, impatient, as it were, of any longer 
restraint, and demanding a larger sphere, shall diffuse 
itself, like the light of heaven, to the ends of the 
world. Hasten, then, O hasten the dawning of that 
happy day, when congregations of converted Gentiles 
shall every where lift up their voices, and, perhaps in 
the words of this very Psalm, sing to thy praise and 
glory ! 

4. O let the nations be glad, and sing for joy ; for 
thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern 
the nations upon earth. 

And a very sufficient cause, surely, is here assign- 
ed, why the " nations" should '* be glad, and sing for 
joy, upon the erection of Messiah's kingdom in the 
midst of them; namely, because he would "judge 
the people righteously breaking the yoke of the 
oppressor, and the iron rod of the prince of this 
world ; becoming himself an advocate in the cause of 
his church ; introducing her into the glorious liberty 
of the children of God, whose service is perfect free- 
dom; and, with a sceptre, around which justice and 
mercy are wreathed together, " governing the na- 
tions upon earth." 

5. Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the 
people praise thee. Chorus repeated as above, ver. 3. 

6. Then shall the earth yield her increase ; and 
God, even our own God, shall bless us. 

Then, when that long-expected time shall arrive, 
<c the earth shall yield her increase ;" the nations of 
the world shall be converted to the faith, and become 
fruitful in every good word and work, through the 
benediction of heaven upon them*. 

7. God shall bless us ; and all the ends of the earth 
shall fear him. 

* Universae gentes ad Deum convertentur, et electi, abun- 
dabunt bonis operibus, rerumque omnium oopia. Bossuet. 



Commentary on Psalm LXvin. 139 

The evangelical " blessings," predicted in this 
Psalm, have been long since poured out upon " the 
ends of the earth," by the bountiful hand of God in 
Christ. Let us beseech him to add yet this to all 
his other mercies, that, in return for such unmerited 
favours, the redeemed may have grace evermore to 
pay him the tribute of fear and obedience, of duty 
and love. 



PSALM LXVIII. 

One of the Proper Psalms appointed for 
Whitsunday. 

ARGUMENT. 

This beautiful, sublime, and comprehensive, but very 
difficult, Psalm, is one of those which the church 
has appointed to be used on Whit-sunday- It 
seems evidently to have been composed on that 
festive and joyful occasion, the removal of the ark 
to mount Sion. See 2 Sam. vi. 1 Chron. xv. * 
Under this figure, David, foreseeing the exalta- 
tion of Messiah, speaks of him, whom he de- 

* The argument seems to be, a prognostication of success to 
David and the kingdom of Israel, and a victory over their ene- 
mies, in consequence of the manifestation of the especial pre- 
sence of God on mount Sion, and by his power exerted in their 
favour. In the mystical sense, which is authorized by St. 
Paul, Eph.iv. 8. it is, according to Vitringa, " Ascensio Chris- 
ti in eoslos, et sessio ad dextram Patris, et illius effecta, quae 
sunt collectio et conservatio ecclesiae, ac destructio hostium 
sibi et ecclesiae adversorum." Bishop Lowth, in Merrick's 
Annotations. Dr. Chandler, in his if Critical History of the 
Life of David" has given an admirable exposition of the lite- 
ral, or historical, sense of this Psalm, and a very ingenious 
division of it into five parts, founded on the supposition of its 
being performed at the removal of the ark. The author has 
been greatly assisted, in the ensuing comment, by the Doc- 
tor's exposition, and the reader will find the division of the 
Psalm inserted. 



140 Commentary on Psalm lxviii. 

scribes, 1, 2. as arising, and vanquishing his ene- 
mies ; 3 — 6. as causing the faithful to rejoice, 
and shewing mercy to the afflicted ; 7 — 15. as 
bringing his church out of bondage, supporting 
her in the world by the Word and the Spirit, purg- 
ing away her corruptions, and subduing her adver- 
saries ; the groundwork being laid in the history 
of the Egyptian deliverance, the Manna and the 
Law given in the wilderness, and the overthrow of 
the Canaanitish nations. 16 — 20. David returns 
to the scene before him, celebrates the ascension 
of Christ with power and great glory, to the hea- 
venly Sion, and the gifts he should from thence 
pour down upon men ; 21 — 23. foretels the ven- 
geance he would take on his opposers ; 24— -28. 
sets forth the order of the church in her services ; 
29 — 31. predicts the conversion of the nations ; 
all of whom, 32 — 35, lie exhorts to unite in chant- 
ing forth the praises of their God and Saviour. 

1. Let God arise, let his enemies he scattered; let 
them also that hate him, flee before him. 

These words were used by Moses, whenever the 
ark set forward before the armies of Israel, in their 
progress towards Canaan : Numb. x. 85. David, 
in like manner, uses them in this triumphal hymn, on 
the removal of the ark to the city of Zion : 1 Chron. 
xiii. and xv. Dr. Chandler supposes this part of 
the Psalm, from ver. I. to ver. 6, inclusive, to have 
been sung, when the ark was taken up on the should- 
ers of the Levites. The church now celebrates, in 
the same terms the substance of the foregoing sha- 
dows ; she sings the praises of her Redeemer, rising 
from the dead, and preceding the Israel of God, 
to the true land of promise ; when " his enemies," 



Commentary on Psalm lxviii. 141 

the powers of darkness, sin, and death, u were 
scattered, and they that hated him fled before him." 
And the Christian, in the hour of temptation will 
always find this verse a most powerful and profitable 
ejaculation. 

2. As smoke is driven away, so drive them away ; 
as wax melteth before the fire, so let the wicked pe- 
rish at the presence of God. 

The sudden and utter destruction of the enemies 
of God and of his people, is resembled first, to 
the dissipation of " smoke." which, though it rises 
from the earth in black and tremendous clouds, is 
by the wind presently brought to nothing ; secondly, 
to the melting of " wax" which though, to appear- 
ance, of a firm and solid consistence, yet, when held 
to the fire for a few minutes, dissolves, and makes 
no more resistance. So let all thine enemies perish, 
O Lord, within us. Let our vain imaginations be 
dispersed before thy Spirit and our corruptions melt 
and die away, at the presence of thy light and thy 
truth. 

3. But let the righteous be glad ; let them rejoice 
before God ; yea let them exceedingly rejoice. 

A variety of expressions is used in the Hebrew to 
denote the festive "joy" and " delight" with which 
the righteous celebrate the triumphs of their God over 
his and their enemies, under each dispensation re- 
spectively. When the heart is full of these sensa- 
tions, it has no desire to resort to the WGrld for plea- 
sure. 

4. Sing unto God, sing praises unto his name ; 
extol him that rideth upon the heavens, by his name 
J AH, and rejoice before him. 

The Prophet exhorts the people of God to mag- 
nify, with psalms and hymns, and spiritual songs, 
the eternal and incommunicable " name" of him 
who was, and is, and is to come ;" who, deriving 
being from none, gives it to all ; and who, as Re- 
deemer of his people, is exalted above the " hea- 



142 Commentary on Psalm lxviii. 

vens," and all the powers therein ; above the gods of 
the nations ; acknowledged and glorified by saints 
and angels ; feared and trembled at by ungodly men, 
and evil spirits *. 

5. A father of the fatherless, and a judge of the 
widows, is God in his holy habitation. 

After a description of God's " majesty," the 
Psalmist proceeds to make mention of his " mercy" 
towards the afflicted Israelites, who had suffered so 
much, in Egypt, and in the wilderness. The cause 
of the " fatherless and widow" he takes into his own 
hands. But never did he do this in so full and ex- 
tensive a manner, as when by becoming man, he 
betrothed the church to himself in righteousness, and 
became a father to her fatherless children. 

6. God settelh the solitary in families 1 , he bring- 
eth out those which are bound in chains : but the re- 
bellious dwell in a dry land. 

The " solitary," or destitute, in this verse, are the 
same persons with " the fatherless and widow," in 
the foregoing ; those as Dr. Chandler observes, 
whose fathers and families had been destroyed in 
Egypt, or fallen in the wilderness ; who, therefore, 
were left alone, destitute of help. These God after- 
wards •* made to sit down in families," blessed them 
with a numerous progeny, and the peaceable enjoy- 
ment of domestic felicity. Thus hath since been ma- 
nifested the same tender care of Heaven, in calling 
home the wretched outcasts among the nations, and 
admitting them into the holy and happy family of the 
children of God. Another instance of God's mercy, 

* The idea of " riding on the heavens," furnished by our 
translation, is here followed, because CDt^Il 113*7^ ' n the 33d 
verse, seems to be exactly parallel. But bishop Lowth, Mr. 
Merrick, and Dr. Chandler render ITQ^Jft 22lb I^D* " Pre- 
pare the way for him who rideth through the deserts," i. e. who 
rode upon the cherubim, through the wilderness ; alluding to 
the passage of the ark. This construction seems most agree- 
able to the common usage of the words employed in the ori- 
ginal. Either way, the idea is truly great and sublime. 



Commentary on Psalm lxviii. 143 

mentioned in this verse, is he that f bringeth out 
those which are bound in chains," delivering his 
people from a spiritual, as he once did Israel from a 
temporal bondage. " But the rebellious," the un- 
godly and impenitent, " dwell in a dry land," in a 
spiritual desert, where no waters of life, of comfort, 
and salvation, flow. Such is the state of the rebel- 
lious Jews at this day, like that of their murmuring 
predecessors in the wilderness. This allusion, says 
bishop Lowth, to the deliverance from the Egyptian 
bondage, and the destruction of the murmurers in the 
desert, brings in, with great ease, the full subject of 
the exodus. 

7. O God, when thou wentest forth before thy 
people; when thou didst march through the wilder- 
ness : 8. The earth shook, the heavens also dropped 
at the presence of God; even Sinai itself was moved 
at the presence of God, the God of Israel, 

This part of the Psalm, from ver. 7. to ver. 14. is 
the second, in Dr. Chandler's division. It is sup- 
posed to have been sung when the procession began, 
and to have lasted till mount Sion was in view. The 
Prophet goes back to commemorate the wonders 
wrought for Israel, when Jehovah, by his presence in 
the cloudy pillar, conducted them through the wilder- 
ness : when, descending to deliver the law, he bowed 
the heavens, and shook the earth, and caused Sinai 
to quake from its foundations. The Christian 
church, singing this Psalm on the day of Pentecost, 
commemorates, under these terms and figures, her 
redemption from the spiritual Egypt, by the resur- 
rection of Jesus, with mighty signs and wonders, 
and the succeeding delivery of the new law from 
mount Sion, after the descent of the Holy Spirit; by 
which the old Jewish dispensation was shaken and 
removed, to make way for one that should last for 
ever. See Heb. xii. 18—28. 

9. Thou, O God, didst send a plentiful, Heb. a 
2 



144 Commentary on Psalm lxviii. 



free, liberal, or, gracious rain, whereby thou didst 
confirm thine inheritance, when it ivas weary. 

As the heavens, at the command of God, rained 
down manna, &c. to strengthen and refresh the well- 
nigh famished people, in the wilderness; so, by the 
descent of the Spirit from above, bringing with 
him the word of life, the church, in her infant 
and languid state, was mightily confirmed and in- 
vigorated. 

10. Thy congregation hath dwelt therein: thou, 
O God, hast prepared of thy goodness for the poor. 

In the former verse, the Psalmist tells us, that 
God hath confirmed, refreshed, and revived, his in- 
heritance, by the plentiful, and as it were voluntary, 
showers of bread and flesh, that he rained down upon 
them. In these words, Dr. Chandler apprehends, 
bespeaks of the manner, as well as abundance of the 
food thus given them ; and renders the verse thus — 
— " -jnTJ Thy food," or, " As to thy food," the food 
which thou gavestthem, " "QtEP They dwelt in the 
midst of it; thou didst prepare, O God, by thy good- 
ness, for the poor." Thus the history informs us, that 
the manna covered by the dew " lay round about the 
host ; and that the quails were " let fall by the camp, 
about a day's journey on one side, and a day's journey 
on the other, round about the camp •" Exod. xvi. 13. 
Numb. xi. 31. This w r as literally, " dwelling in the 
midst of the food God had provided them." By 
the ministration of the word and sacraments in the 
Christian church, the true manna, the bread which 
cometh down, with the dew of God's blessing from 
heaven, is continually furnished, for the nourishment 
of those who " hunger and thirst after rig hteousness." 
It " falls round about the camp," and, " as to this 
thy food, O God," we, thy favoured people, have the 
happiness to U dwell in the midst of it: thus, " thou 
hast prepared, of thy goodness, for the poor in 
spirit." 



Commentary on Psalm lxviu. 145 

11. The Lord gave the word; great was the 
company of those that published it. 

He who supplied his people with food in the wil- 
derness, enabled them likewise to vanquish the nu- 
merous enemies that opposed them in their passage 
through it, the Amalekites, the Amorites, the Midian- 
ites, the Moabites, &c. With respect to all these 
enemies, " the Lord gave the word." The Israelites 
engaged them, by his order, see Numb. xxi. 34. 
xxv. 17. and, under his conduct and blessing, ob- 
tained the victory over them. When the enemies of 
man's salvation were vanquished by the resurrection 
of Christ, and the Heathen nations were to own his 
power, again " the Lord gave the word." It was 
published, at first, by apostles, confessors, and mar- 
tyrs, and hath been since published continually, by 
all the churches who celebrate in their services the 
victories of their Redeemer ; as in old time pro- 
phets and prophetesses, Moses, Aaron, Miriam, De- 
borah, and others, with the armies of Israel, sang 
triumphal songs not on occasion of temporal, but fi- 
gurative conquests. 

12. * Kings with their armies did flee apace : Heb. 
fled away, fled away ; and she that tarried at home 
divided the spoil. 

When God, by the hand of Moses and his suc- 
cessor Joshua, led his people through the wilderness, 
into the land of promise, the kings of Canaan, with 
their mighty hosts, were discomfited ; and the women 
of Israel, who, " tarried at home, divided the spoil 1 ' 
of their vanquished enemies. After the conquest of 
the Midianites, as Dr. Chandler observes, God or- 
dered the prey to be divided between them who went 
out on that expedition, and the rest of the congre- 
gation who continued in their tents : Numb. xxxi. 27. 
Thus, in the spiritual war, apostles, confessors, and 

* Bishop Lowth thinks with Dr. Hammond, that this verse 
was the Song sung by the choir, mentioned in the verse pre- 
ceding. Dr. Chandler adds the next verse to it. 

H 



146 Commentary on Psalm lxviii. 

martyrs, went out to the battle, fought and con- 
quered ; while the benefits of the victory extended 
to thousands and millions, who, without being ex- 
posed to their conflicts and torments, have enjoyed 
the fruit of their labours. 

13. Though ye have lien among the pots, yet shall 
ye be as the wings of a dove covered with silver, and 
her feathers with yellow gold. 

By " lying among the pots *," or in " dust and 
ashes," is evidently denoted a state of affliction and 
wretchedness, like that of Israel in Egypt, which 
was exchanged for one of the utmost dignity and 
splendour, in Canaan ; one as different from the 
former, as a caldron, discoloured by smoke and soot, 
is from the bright and beautiful plumage of an eastern 
dove, glistering interchangeably, as with silver and 
gold. Thus the church of Christ emerged from a 
state of persecution and tribulation, into one of 
splendour and magnificence. And such is the 
change made in the spiritual condition of any man, 
when he passes from the bondage of corruption, into 
the glorious liberty of the sons of God ; he is invested 
with the robe of righteousness, and adorned with the 
graces of the Spirit of holiness. 

14. When the Almighty scattered kings in it, it 
was white as snow in Salmon. 

The purport of this difficult verse seems to be, 
that all was white as snow, i. e. all was brightness, 
joy and festivity, about mount Salmon, pD/JQ iWT\ 
when the Almighty, fighting for his people Israel, 
Vanquished their enemies, m, in or about that part 
of the country. 

* My worthy and learned friend, Mr. Parkhurst, in his 
Hebrew Lexicon gives the following account of the word 
D\H5)ttf (derived from Jlpttf, to put or set any thing in order) 

rows of stones "on winch the caldrons or pots are placed. 

Lying among these denotes the most abject slavery ; for this 
was the place of rest allotted to the vilest slaves." So our 
translators render it, in the margin of Ezek. xl. 43. Dr. 
Chandler adopts the same interpretation of the w ord. 



Commentary on Psalm lxviii. 147 

15. The hill of God is as the hill of Bashan ; an 
high hill, as the hill of Bashan, 

When the ark came in view of mount Sion, the 
place of its fixed residence for the future, and pro- 
bably when they began to ascend it, Dr. Chandler 
apprehends, this and the two following verses were 
sung. And if these words be read with an interro- 
gation, he conceives they will appear suitable to the 
occasion, and worthy of the genuine spirit of poetry. 
" The hill of God," that hill which God hath chosen 
to inhabit, " is it the hill of Bashan, the hill with its 
craggy eminences, the hill of Bashan ?" Bashan may 
boast of its proud eminence, its high summits ; but is 
that the hill where God will fix his residence? The 
Prophet speaks of Bashan with contempt and dis- 
dain, in comparison of Sion. And this agrees well 
with what immediately follows — 

16. Why leap ye, or why look ye askance with 
envy, ye high hills ? This is the hill which God de- 
sireth to dwell in ; yea, the Lord will abide in it for 
ever. 

The Psalmist, in commemorating God's former 
mercies aud loving kindnesses, having been led to 
mention the towering hills of Salmon and Bashan, 
by a masterly transition, suddenly resumes his ori- 
ginal subject, with a beautiful apostrophe to those 
mountains, letting them know, that however proudly 
they may lift up their heads above the rest, or, in the 
language of poetry, " look askance with envy" on 
mount Sion, yet this was the mount, which Jehovah 
had determined to honour with his special presence ; 
thither he was now ascending, with the ark of his 
strength ; and there, between the cherubims, in the 
place prepared for him, he would " dwell for ever ;" 
till the whole dispensation would be at an end, till 
the glory of the Lord should be revealed in human 
nature ; till God should be manifest in the flesh, and 
the true tabernacle and temple should succeed the 
h 2 



148 Commentary on Psalm lxviii. 

typical. After that, the privileges of Sion were 
transferred to the Christian church; she became, 
and, while the church lasts, will continue to be, the 
" hill in which God delighteth to dwell she will 
therefore be justly entitled to the pre-eminence over 
all that may seem to be great and glorious in the 
world. 

17. The chariots of God are twenty thousand, 
even thousands of angels, or, thousands repeated: 
the Lord is among them as in Sinai, in the holy 
place, or, Sinai is in the sanctuary. 

The Psalmist, in the preceding verse, had de- 
clared Sion to be the habitation of Jehovah. In this 
verse is described the majesty and magnificence of 
his appearance there, as a mighty conqueror of the 
enemies of his people, riding upon the cherubim, as 
in a triumphal chariot, with all the hosts of heaven, 
as it were, in his retinue. Thus God descended on 
Sinai, with the fire, the cloud, and the glory; thus 
lie manifested himself, when taking possession of 
" the holy place" prepared for him in Sion ; 2 Chron. 
v. 13. ; and in some such manner we may suppose 
king Messiah to have entered heaven at his ascen- 
sion, when he went up in the clouds, with power and 
great glory, and all the attendant spirits joined his 
train, rejoicing to minister to their Lord, and increase 
the pomp and splendour of that glorious day. 

18. Thou hast ascended on high ; thou hast led 
captivity captive ; thou hast received gifts for men ; 
yea, for the rebellious also, that the Lord God 
might dwell among them. 

When the ark had ascended mount Sion, and was 
deposited in the place assigned for it, the singers are 
supposed by Dr. Chandler, to have proceeded with 
this part of the Psalm, in which they celebrate the 
ascension of their God and King, by the symbol of 
his presence, to the heights of Sion, after having sub- 
dued their enemies, and enriched his people with the 
spoil of the vanquished, and the gifts of the tributary 



Commentary on Psalm lxviii. 



149 



nations ; of which much was probably employed in 
the service of the tabernacle, and afterwards in build- 
ing the temple, first designed by David, " that the 
Lord God might dwell," and have a fixed permanent 
habitation among his people. But this whole trans- 
action, like many others of old, being a figurative 
one, the apostle, Ephes. iv. 8. has applied the words 
before us to our blessed Saviour (the true ark, on 
which the glory rested), who personally ascended 
up to the highest heavens, '* led captivity captive," 
by triumphing over his conquered enemies, and hav- 
ing received gifts from his heavenly Father, as the 
fruits of his victory, gave them unto men, as was 
most conducive to the establishment of his church, 
" that the Lord God might dwell among them. — 
Thou hast ascended on high Thou, O Christ, who 
didst descend, from the right hand of the Majesty in 
the heavens, to the lower parts of the earth, art 
again ascended, from the lower parts of the earth to 
the right hand of the Majesty in the heavens : " thou 
hast led captivity captive ;" thou hast conquered the 
conqueror, bound the strong one, redeemed human 
nature from the grave, and triumphantly carried it, 
with thee to the throne of God ; " thou hast re- 
ceived gifts for men, yea, for the rebellious also ;" 
and, being thus ascended into thy glory, thou hast re- 
ceived of the Father the promise of the Spirit, with 
all his gifts and graces, to bestow upon the sons of 
men*; even upon such as heretofore have not only 
broken thy laws, but appeared in arms against thee 

* The Psalmist mentions these gifts as received : f Thou 
hast received gifts for men;" the apostle, in his citation, 
showeth us the end for which they were received ; " He gave 
gifts unto men." Or rather, as the hest critics have observed, 
in the Hebrew idiom, to take gifts for another," is the same 
as to " give them to another." Thus we read, 1 Kings iii. 24. 
" Take me a sword ;" i. e. give, or bring it me. Gen. xviii. 
5. " I will take a bit of bread ; i. e. for you, or to give it you 
— " and comfort ye your hearts." 

H 3 



150 Commentary on Psalm LXViil. 

yet of such as these, converted by the power of thy 
Gospel, wilt thon form and establish a church; " that 
the Lord God may dwell among them ;" that so, 
of thy faithful people gathered from all parts of the 
world, may be built up a living temple, " an habita- 
tion of God through the Spirit." 

19. Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us 
with benefits ; Heb. carries, or, supports us ; even 
the God of salvation. 20. He that is our God, 
is the God of salvation : and unto God the Lord 
belong the issues from death, Heb. the goings forth 
to death, ox, of death. 

The preceding survey of God's dispensations con- 
straineth the church to break out into an act of praise, 
and to bless the Preserver of men, the Author of eter- 
nal " salvation;" in whose hands are the "goings 
forth of death ;" in other words, who has " the keys 
of death and the grave; Rev. i. 18. who is possessed 
of power to confine, and to release ; to kill, and to 
make alive. 

21. But God shall wound the head of his enemies : 
and the hairy scalp, or, crown, of such an one as 
goeth on still in his trespasses. 

The meaning is — God shall strike deep, or exhaust 
the blood of the head of his enemies, even the hairy 
crown of him that goes on in his guilty practices ; 
where the emphasis consists in the description of 
God's enemies, who were such as persevered in their 
criminal actions. This verse begins a prediction of 
that vengeance, which the Person, who was 
" ascended on high," would infallibly execute upon 
his impenitent enemies, and which was shadowed 
forth in the destruction of the enemies of Israel, 
by David, after that the ark of God was placed 
upon the hill of Sion. See 2 Sam. viii. The ex- 
pressions, " the head," and the " hairy crown," de- 
note the principal part, the strength, the pride, and 
the glory of the adversary, which was to be crushed. 



Commentary on Psalm lxviii. 15 L 

according to the original sentence; u He shall braise 
thy head." Gen. iii. 15. 

22. The Lord said, I will bring again from Ba- 
shan ,• I will bring my people again from the depths 
of the sea: 23. That thy foot may be dipped in the 
blood of thine enemies: and the tongue of thy dogs 
in the same, 

Abner, in his conference with the elders of Israel, 
to bring them over to David's interest, tells them, 
" The Lord hath spoken of David, saying: By the 
hand of my servant David, I will save my people 
Israel, out of the hand of the Philistines, and out 
of the hand of all their enemies f 2 Sam. iii. 18. 
Thus Jehovah had promised to repeat in Israel, by 
David, his glories acts ; to work as signal victories 
and deliverances for his people, as he had formerly 
done in the field of Bashan, and at the Red Sea; 
when they saw their enemies dead at their feet. By 
the glorious resurrection, and triumphant ascension 
of king Messiah, by the conquests of the Gospel, and 
the unparalleled overthrow of its opposers, were 
these figures realized, and these shadows changed 
into substances. 

24. They have seen thy goings, or, marches in 
procession, O God; even the goings, or, marches, 
of my God, my King, in, or, into the sanctuary. 

When the ark was safely deposited, the sacrifices 
were offered, the solemnity well-nigh concluded, and 
the whole assembly about to return back, Dr. Chand- 
ler supposes the singers to have struck up, and 
joined in the remaining part of this noble anthem. 
These words contain a sort of triumph, because this 
great work of translating the ark was now so hap- 
pily accomplished. The people of Israel had a pledge 
and earnest of those mighty things which God would 
do for them, by the joyful and victorious manner 
in which, with the ark of his presence, he had taken 
possession of the place prepared for him on mount 
Sion, and gone " into the sanctuary." A like pledge 



152 Commentary on Psalm LXVIII. 

and earnest of her future enlargement and exaltation, 
was the ascension of her Lord and Head to the 
Christian church. 

25. The singers went before, the players on instru- 
ments followed after; amongst them were the dam- 
sels playing with timbrels. 

The joy and gladness expressed by David, and 
the house of Israel, when in solemn procession, with 
the sound of vocal and instrumental music, they 
i( brought up the ark of Jehovah, and set it in its 
place," 2 Sam. vi. 5. 15. 17. may be considered as a 
prelude to that voice of universal exultation, with 
which the Christian church, in her holy services, 
doth now celebrate the resurrection and ascension 
of her Redeemer. 

26. Bless ye God in the congregations y even the 
Lord, from the fountain of Israel, 

f* Bless ye God in the congregations;" in this 
form of words the Israelites are supposed, when ac- 
companying the ark, to have reciprocally exhorted 
and encouraged each other to exert their utmost 
powers in the sacred employment of blessing and 
thanking God: "even the Lord from the fountain 
of Israel :" the " fountain of Israel" is the same 
with the " stock, or family of Israel. " See Isa. xlviii. 
I. The sense of this latter clause therefore is, 
" Bless the Lord, ye who are sprung from the stock 
of Israel thus is the duty of blessing and thanks- 
giving enforced on the congregations of the faithful, 
in all ages. 

27. There is little Benjamin with their ruler, the 
princes of Judah and their council, the princes of 
Zebulun, and the princes of Naphtali, 

The literal rendering of this verse is — " There is 
little Benjamin their ruler, the princes of Judah their 
council, the princes of Zebulun, and the princes of 
Naphtali." In this enumeration of the tribes of Is- 
rael, that were present at the removal of the ark, 
four only are mentioned ; Benjamin and Judah, who 



Commentary on Psalm jlxviii. 153 



dwelt nearest to the city of David; Zebulun and 
Naphtali, who were the farthest distant from it; to 
show, as Dr. Chandler observes, the unanimity of the 
whole nation, and of all the tribes far and near, in 
attending this solemnity, to testify their willing ac- 
knowledgment of David for their king, and the city 
of David for their capital, where all the great solem- 
nites of religion should be performed, and their an- 
nual festivals continually celebrated. Benjamin, 
though the youngest tribe, is named first, and called 
the " ruler;" because from that tribe sprang Saul, 
the first king Israel. The attendance of this tribe 
showed, that all envy and opposition to David from 
Saul's party was at an end. Upon David's acces- 
sion to the crown, Judah became the royal tribe, and 
supported the throne by its counsels. Zebulun and 
Naphtali were tribes of eminent learning and know- 
ledge. See Gen. xlix. 21. Judg. v. 14. Thus, after 
the publication of the Gospel, the nations flocked 
into the church, both those that were near, and those 
that were afar off; power, wisdom, and learning', 
submitted themselves to the kingdom, and conspired 
to set forth the glory, of Messiah. 

28. Thy God hath commanded thy strength ; 
strengthen, O God, that which thou hast wrought 
for us* 

The former part of this verse contains a comfort- 
able assurance given to the church, that God had 
made provision, and issued out orders, for her esta- 
blishment and security. In the latter clause is a 
prayer, that he would accomplish all his counsels 
concerning her; and, as he had begun a good work,, 
so that he would vouchsafe to perfect it unto the clay 
of the Lord. 

20. Because of thy temple at Jerusalem, shall 
kings bring presents unto thee. 

David foretels, that on the establishment of the 
then church and worship in Jerusalem, the kings of 
the Gentiles should come, and make their oblations 
h5 



154 Commentary on Psalm Lxvin. 

at the temple * of God; which happened in his days, 
and those of his son Solomon, as an earnest and figure 
of that plenary accession of the kings of the earth to 
the church of Christ, which was to take place in the 
latter days, under the Gospel. See 2 Sam. viii. 9 — 
11. 1 Kings v. 1. x. 1. 24. 2 Chron. ix 23. Isa. !x. 
3. 6. Matt. ii. 11. Rev. xxi. 24. 

30. Rebuke the company of spearmen, the multi- 
tude of the bulls, with the calves of the people, till 
every one submit himself with pieces of silver; scat' 
ter thou the people that delight in war. 

We have here a prophetical prayer against the 
enemies of the Israelitish church. The whole verse, 
when literally translated, runs thus — " Rebuke the 
wild beast of the reeds, the congregation of the 
mighty among the calves of the nations, skipping, or 
exulting, with pieces of silver ; scatter the people 
that delight in war." By the " wild beast of the 
reeds," is to be understood the Egyptian power, de- 
scribed by its emblem the crocodile, or river horse, 
creatures living among the ** reeds" of the Nile. 
The " calves of the nations" intend the objects of 
worship among the Egyptians, their Apis, Osiris, &c. 
around which the " congregation of the mighty" as- 
sembled. And by their " skipping with," or, " ex- 
ulting in, pieces of silver," may either be meant their 
dancing at their idolatrous festivals with the tinkling 
instruments called " sistra," which might be made of 
" silver," or else it may imply their " glorying in 
pieces of silver," or, " in their riches." The last 
member of the verse is plain, ** Scatter the people 
that delight in war." The whole is evidently a prayer 
of the Prophet to this effect, that it would please 
God to bring down and overthrow the strength, the 
pride, and the idolatry of Egypt, that ancient adver- 

* The tabernacle is called fePTT. 1 Sam. iii. 3. This might, 
otherwise, seem inconsistent with the supposed occasion of 
the Psalm, and the times of David, when there was yet no 
temple there. Bishop Lowth. 

6 



Content ary on Psalm lxviii. 155 

sary and oppressor of Israel % — The Christian church, 
in like manner, through faith in the power of her 
Lord risen from the dead and ascended into heaven, 
prayeth for the confusion of her implacable enemies, 
who delight in opposing the kingdom of Messiah. 

31. Princes, or, ambassadors, shall come out of 
Egypt; Ethiopia shall soon stretchout her hands 
unto God. 

The hostile powers being overthrown, and the 
church of Israel fully established, the nations around 
her, even those which had been most given to Idola- 
try, sued for her friendship, and came to Jerusalem, 
with their gifts and oblations : as, in like manner, 
after the defeat of Maxentius and Maximin, the Ro- 
man empire, with all its tributary provinces, was 
added to the church of Christ. 

32. Sing unto God, ye kingdoms of the earth : O 
sing praises unto the Lord, 

" Rapt into future times," the Prophet exhorteth, 
not Judea only, but all " the kingdoms of the earth, 
to unite in chanting forth the praises of their God and 
Saviour." In the fulness of time, this exhortation 
was heard and obeyed. For Eusebius thus describes 
the state of the church in the days of Constantine : 
" There was one and the same power of the Holy 
Spirit, which passed through all the members; one 

* Increpa regem Egypti populo tuo invidentem, increpa 
etiarn optimates qui inter populos honore et viribus eminent, 
argenteis clavis, vel aliis insignibus ornati. Bossuet. See 
bi^liop Lowtb, Praelect. vi. ad fin. edit. 8vo. The sense of the 
verse cannot be better expressed, than it is by Mr. Merrick 
in his version: 

The beast, that from his reedy bed, 
On Nile's proud banks, uplifts the head, 
Rebuke, indignant ; nor the throng 
Forget, from whose misguided tongue 
The heifer and the grazing steer 

The offer'd vow, unconscious, hear ; 

While to the silver's tinkling sound, 
Their feet in solemn dance rebound. 

h6 



156 Commentary on Psalm LXVlii. 

soul in all ; the same alacrity of faith ; one common 
consent in chanting forth the praises of God." Euseb. 
Eccles. Hist. b. x. chap. 2. And it deserves notice, 
that the primitive Christians, when delivered from 
the rage of persecuting tyrants, they freely celebrated 
their holy festivals, could find no words so well cal- 
culated to express the joy and gladness of their hearts, 
as the songs of Moses, and David, and the prophets, 
which seemed to have been divinely penned on pur- 
pose for their use, upon that glorious occasion. The 
reader may see several very curious and beautiful in- 
stances of this, in the opening of the xth book of 
Eusebius's History, and in the panegyric there re- 
corded to have been spoken by him, in a full ecclesi- 
astical assembly, to Paulinus, bishop of Tyre, upon 
the consecration of that church. 

33. To him that rideth upon the heaven of hea- 
vens, which were of old ; lo, he doth send out his 
voice, and that a mighty voice. 

The praises of the church are sung to him who, 
after his sufferings here below, reascended to take 
possession of his ancient throne, high above all hea- 
vens ; who from thence speaketh to the world by his 
glorious Gospel, mighty and powerful, as thunder, in 
its effects upon the hearts of men. See Ps. xxix. 
throughout. The power of Christ's voice, when he 
was on earth, appeared by the effects which followed, 
when he said, " Young man, arise:" " Lazarus, 
come forth:" " Peace, be still:" and it will yet far- 
ther appear, when " all that are in the grave shall 
hear the voice of the Son of man, and come forth." 

34. Ascribe ye strength unto God; his excellency 
is over Israel, and his strength is in the clouds, Heb. 
the skies. 

God requires his people lo ascribe unto him the 
kingdom, and the power, and the glory; to acknow- 
ledge him as the author of life, health, and salvation, 
of all they are, and all they have, in nature and in 
grace; to glorify him as the Creator and Governor 



Commentary on Psalm lxix. 157 

of the world, the Redeemer and Sanctifier of his 
church. 

35. O God, thou art terrible out of thy holy 
places : the God of Israel is he that giveth strength 
and power unto his people. Blessed be God. 

The Psalmist, here exemplifying the precept laid 
down in the foregoing verse, ascribes to God the 
glory of his appearance in the sanctuary, as the God 
and King of Israel, terrifying and dismaying his ene- 
mies, comforting and invigorating his people. Such 
is the presence of a glorified Saviour, by his Spirit, 
in the Christian church. For this, and all other his 
mercies, she is bound continually to say, and, by her 
holy services, continually doth she say, blessed be 
God. 



PSALM LXIX. 

ARGUMENT. 

The application of many passages in this Psalm to 
our Lord, made by himself and his apostles, as well 
as the appointment of the whole, by the church, to 
be used on Good Friday, direct us to consider it 
as uttered by the Son of God, in the day of his 
passion. 1 — 5. He describeth his sufferings, un- 
dergone for the sins of men ; 6, 7. prayeth that his 
disciples may not be offended at the pain and 
shame of the cross * ; 8 — 12. relateth the usage he 

* In confesso est apud Christianos, in Psalmo lxix. nobis ob 
oculos poni Christum, eumque passum. Nos addiuius, eum- 
que crucifixura; quia evangelistae Mattliaeus, Marcus, et Jo- 
hannes, comma vigesimum, secundum certaa circumstantiae 
crucifixionis Christi applicarunt — Notalum igitur volumus, 
Christum in tota sua ad Patrem supplicatione(est enim ejus- 
dem argument! cum Ps. xxii.) describere mortis et calami- 
tatis suae genus, ut maxime pudendum, et ignominiosum. 



358 Commentary on Psalm XLIX. 

met with at the hands of the Jews ; 13 — 19. mak- 
eth his prayer to the Father ; 20, 21. complaineth 
of his desolate estate, of the reproach cast upon 
him, and of the gall and vinegar administered to 
him ; 22 — 28. foretelleth the judgments of heaven, 
about to fall upon the Jewish nation ; 29. returneth 
to the consideration of his own sorrows, and pray- 
eth for deliverance ; 30, 31. praiseth the Father 
for the accomplishment of that deliverance; S2, 33» 
exhorteth all men to come and partake of it, and 
34. the whole creation to join in a chorus of thanks- 
giving for it; 35, 36. predicteth the salvation, edifi- 
cation, and perpetuity, of the church. 

1. Save me, O God, for the waters are come in 
unto my soul. 2. J sink in deep mire, where there 
is no standing : I am come into deep waters, where 
the floods overflow me. 

The Gospels inform us concerning the constancy 
and patience of Christ under his sufferings : the suf- 
ferings themselves (those in particular of his soul), 
are largely described in the Psalms ;many of which, 
and this among the rest, seem to have been indited 
beforehand by the Spirit, for his use in the day of 
trouble. As the head of the church, he here be- 
seecheth the Father to i( save," through him, his 
mystical body. He compares the sad situation into 
which he was brought, to that of a drowning man. 
The divine displeasure, like a stormy tempest, was 
let loose upon him ; the sins of the world, as deep 
mire, enclosed and detained him ; whilst all the wa- 
ters of affliction went over his head, and penetrated 
to his vitals. 

Item, ad ver. 8. 20, 21.— Christus nullas hie negligit voces, 
quae probram aut ignominiam status, in quo tunc erat, design 
nare valent. Vitringa, Observ. Sacr. lib. ii. cap. 10. 



Commentary on Psalm LXIX. 159 



3. I am weary of my crying, my throat is dried ; 
mine eyes fail, while 1 wait for my God. 

This verse describes tbe effects of tbose supplica- 
tions which the Son of God offered up, " witb strong 
crying and tears, in tbe days of bis flesh Heb. v. 7 ; 
of that thirst, which, through loss of blood on tbe 
cross, i( dried his throat and of that long and pa- 
tient endurance, when his " eyes failed," and were 
closed in darkness, while his faith " waited'' for tbe 
deliverance promised by the Father. The hour is 
coming, when our eyes must fail, and be closed ; but 
even then, " let us wait for our God :" in tbis re- 
spect, " let us die the death of that righteous" per- 
son, who died for us ; " and let our last end be like 
his/' 

4. They that hate me without a cause, are more 
than the hairs of my head ; they that would destroy 
me, being mine enemies wrongfully , are mighty : then 
I restored that which I took not away. 

The Jews, the Romans, and the spirits of dark- 
ness, made up that multitude of enemies, which, like 
an herd of evening wolves, surrounded the Lamb of 
God, thirsting after his blood, nor resting till they 
bad drawn forth the very last drop of it from his 
heart. And thus the only innocent person in the 
world suffered for all its guilt, making satisfaction 
for wrongs which he never did, and " restoring that 
which he took not away 

5. O God, thou knowest my foolishness ; and my 
sins are not hid from thee. 

These words, in the mouth of David, or any 
other sinful son of Adam, are plain enough. They 
may, nevertheless, be spoken, as tbe rest of the Psalm 

* " Quae non rapui" — Ex persons! Christi : ita mecuni agi- 
tur, ac si rapta ab altero, ab altero, eoque innoxio, repel as ; 
iieque enim impiorum exeraplo, Deo rapui honorein debi- 
tum ; pro eis solvo quieunque rapuerunt ; sicut scriptum est: 
" Propter scelus populi mei, pereussi eum." Isa. liii. 8. 

BOSSUET. 



160 Commentary on Psalm lxix. 

is, iu the person of Christ, concerning the iniquities 
committed by us, but " laid on him which he 
therefore mentions, as if they had been his own ; the 
head complaining of diseases incident only to the 

members *. 

6. Let not them that wait on thee, O Lord God of 
hosts, he ashamed for my sake ; let not those that 
seek thee be confounded for my sake, O God of 
Israel. 7. Because for thy sake, I have borne re- 
proach ; shame hath covered my face. 

The Son of God prefers a petition to the Father 
that his disciples may not be scandalized on account 
of his passion, or be tempted to relinquish their trust 
in God, at beholding his only and beloved Son for- 
saken on the cross; since it was not for any demerit 
of his own, but for the sake of God's glory, as well as 
man's salvation, that he " bore reproach, and shame 
covered his face." It ought to be the prayer of 
every Christian, especially if he be a minister of the 
Gospel, that his sufferings in the world may not give 
just offence to the brethren, or the church ; which 
they never will do, if he suffers in a good cause, with 
a good conscience. 

S. 1 am become a stranger unto my brethren and 
an alien unto my mother s children. 9. For the zeal 
of thine house hath eaten me up: and the reproaches 
of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me. 

The Jews were Christ's 6( brethren,'' according to 
the flesh. To them he was a " stranger and an alien." 
u He came to his own, and his own received him 
not." " We know," said they, " that God spake unto 
Moses; but as for this fellow, we know not from 
whence he is." And again, " Thou art a Samari- 
tan, and hast a devil." John i. 11. ix. 29. viii. 

* So this verse is interpreted by the fathers, and many of 
the commentators cited by Poole, in his Synopsis — Thus also 
Bossuet — *f Insipientiam meani et delicta mea." — Qua; in me 
suscepi. " Quia posuit in eo Dominus iniqunates omnium 
nostrum." Isa. liii. 6. 



Commentary on Psalm LXIX. 161 

48. The ground of all this enmity was the " zeal" 
of Christ for the reformation and purification of the 
church, which he manifested in his reproofs and ex- 
hortations, as also by the emblematical act of driving 
the buyers and sellers out of the temple. Upon this 
latter occasion, the evangelist tells us, "his disciples 
remembered that it was written," that is, it was 
predicted of Messiah in this Psalm, " The zeal of 
thine house hath eaten me up John ii. 17. 
Therefore, as he adds immediately, " the reproaches 
of them that reproached thee fell on me." In calum- 
niating and blaspheming the works of the Son of God, 
the Jews reproached both the Father who. gave 
him those works to do, and the Spirit, by which 
he did them : all which reproaches fell on the man 
Christ, as the visible instrument employed in the 
doing of them. This last passage is thus quoted and 
applied by St. Paul — " Even Christ pleased not him- 
self : but, as it is written, The reproaches of them 
that reproached thee fell on me :" Rom. xv. 3. 
The usage our Lord met with from his brethren, be- 
cause of his zeal for the house of God, should com- 
fort those who meet with the same usage, on the 
same account. 

10. When I wept and chastened my soul with fast' 
ing> that was to my reproach. II. I made sackcloth 
also my garment ; and I became a proverb to them. 
12. They that sit in the gate speak against me : and 
I was the song of the drunkards. 

To expiate the sins of his creatures, the King of 
glory became a man of sorrows ; he put on mortal 
flesh, as a penitential garment ; he fasted, and pray- 
ed, and mourned, and wept, and humbled himself 
to the dust, as if he had been the offender, and we 
the righteous persons that needed no repentance. 
And what return was made him I " It was to his re- 
proach, and he became a proverb to them," for 
whom he suffered. " They that sat in the gate," or, 



162 Commentary on Psalm LXIX. 

on the " judgment-seat," which used to be in the 
gates of cities, even the senators and judges of the 
land, the chief priests and elders, spake against 
him," with cool and deliberate malice ; while he 
was " the song of the drunken" and profligate, who 
more grossly insulted and derided him. The true 
followers of the holy Jesus will often experience the 
like treatment, from an evil and adulterous gene- 
ration. 

13. But as for me, my prayer is unto thee t O 
Lord, in an acceptable time: O God, in the multi- 
tude of thy mercies hear me, in the truth of thy sal- 
vation. 

The Son of God himself, in the midst of sorrows 
and sufferings, has recourse to prayer, pleading for 
his church the " mercies" of the Father, set forth in 
the promises, and his " truth," engaged to make those 
promises good, in the " salvation" of his chosen, 
through their head and representative. The " ac- 
ceptabe time," in which Christ prayed, was the 
time when he offered the great propitiatory sacrifice. 
Through the merit of that sacrifice it is, that we have 
an *i acceptable time, and a day of salvation," allow- 
ed us. Behold, now is that time, behold now is 
that day ! Let us not delay one moment to use and 
improve it aright. 

34. Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not 
sink; let iw he delivered from them that hate me, 
and out of the deep waters. 15. Let not the water* 
flood overflow me, neither let the deep swallow me up, 
and let not the pit shut her mouth upon me. 

Messiah petitions for deliverance from calamities, 
under the same images which were employed at the 
beginning of the Psalm, to describe those calamities. 
The purport of the petition is, that the sins of the 
world, and the sufferings due to them, may not finally 
overwhelm him, nor the grave " shut her mouth 
upon him" for ever ; but that the morning of his 



Commentary on Psalm LXix. 163 

resurrection may at length succeed the night of his 
passion. Such is also the hope and the prayer of the 
church, and of the Christian, here below. 

16. Hear me, O Lord, for thy loving kindness is 
good ; turn unto me, according to the multitude of 
thy tender mercies. 17. Aud hide not thy face from 
thy servant, for I am in trouble ; hear me speedily. 
18. Draw nigh unto my soul, and redeem it; deliver 
me because of mine enemies. 19. Thou hast known 
my reproach, my shame, and my dishonour : mine 
adversaries are all before thee. 

As afflictions increase, the prayers are redoubled. 
Christ pleads with the Father for redemption from 
death, on account of his divine " loving-kindness and 
mercy ;" of his own great " trouble ;" of his *' ene- 
mies," that they might be either converted or con- 
founded ; of the " reproach, shame, and dishonour," 
undergone by him, that they might be wiped off, and 
done away ; of the wrong he suffered from his ad- 
versaries, whose iniquitous proceedings were " all 
before God," and known unto him. Deliverance 
from tribulation and persecution, is prayed for by 
the church, and by her faithful children, upon the 
same grounds. 

20. Reproach hath broken my heart, and 1 am full 
of heaviness : and Hooked for some to take pity, but 
there was none ; and for comforters, but J found 
none. 21. They gave me also gall for my meat, and 
in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink. 

The argument urged by Christ, in these most af- 
fecting words, is, that in the extremity of his passion, 
he was left alone without a comforter, a friend, or 
an attendant ; while all that were round about him 
studied to infuse every bitter and acrimonious ingre- 
dient into his cup of sorrows. This was literally as 
well as metaphorically true, when " they gave him 
to drink vinegar mingled with gall." See Matt, 
xxvii. 34. John xix. 28. Such are the comforts 



164 Commentary on Psalm LXIX. 

often administered, by the world, to an afflicted and 
deserted soul, 

22. Their table * shall become a snare before them ; 
and that which should have been for their welfare, 
Heb. their peace offerings, shall become a trap. 

At this verse beginneth a prediction of those 
dreadful judgments which heaven has since inflicted 
upon the crucifiers of the Lord of glory. By their 
" table becoming a snare, and their peace-offerings 
a trap," is pointed out the consequence of the Jews' 
adhering to the legal services, in opposition to him 
who is " the end of the law for righteousness." 
After his sufferings and exaltation, to continue under 
the law, became not only unprofitable, but destruc- 
tive, inasmuch as it implied a denial of Messiah's 
advent, and a renunciation of every evangelical be- 
nefit and blessing. The religion of God's own ap- 
pointment was an abomination to him, when reduced 
to the form of godliness, deserted by its power. 
Christians, who pride themselves in the one, while 
they deny and deride the other, would do well to 
consider this. 

23. Thou wilt darken their eyes that they shall not 
see ; and make their loins continually to shake. 

They who loved darkness rather than light, by 

* I have taken the liberty to give a future rendering to the 
verbs in this and the following verses. That they are to be so 
understood, saith Dr. Hammond, i. e. in the future sense, by 
way of prediction, and not as imprecation, see St. Aug. de 
Civ. 1. xvii. c. 19. " Haec non optando sunt dicta, sed optandi 
specie, prophetando — These things are not said by the way of 
wishing, but under the show or scene of wishing, by pro- 
phecy." And indeed the Hebrew \T> is in the future, and is 
most fitly rendered, " shall be." And so doth the Jewish Arab 
interpreter observe, that such seeming imprecations as here 
and elsewhere occur in this book of Psalms are not so much 
by way of imprecation, as by way of prophecy or prediction 
of what in God's best judgments would certainly befall man. 
Ham. in loc. 



Commentary on Psalm lxix. 165 



the righteous judgment of God were permitted to 
walk on in darkness, while the blind led the blind. 
And such still continues to be the state of the Jews, 
notwithstanding that intolerable weight of woe which 
made " their loins to shake," and bowed down their 
backs to the earth. " The veil remaineth yet upon 
their hearts," in the reading the Old Testament ; 
nor can they see therein " the things which belong 
unto their peace." These last two verses are cited, 
as spoken of Israel, by St. Paul, Rom. xi 9, 10. 
Afflict us, blessed Lord, if thou seest it good for us 
to be afflicted ; only take not from us, in our afflic- 
tion, the " light" of thy truth, and the " strength" of 
thy grace. 

21. Thou wilt pour out thine indignation upon 
them, and thy wrathful anger will take hold of them. 

Never was " indignation so poured out," never 
did " wrath so take hold" on any nation, as on that, 
which once was, beyond every other, beloved and 
favoured. " The wrath," says St. Paul, 1 Thess. 
ii. 6. " is come upon them to the utmost, sis reXos, to 
the end," to the very last dregs of the cup of fury. 
Let every church which boasted of favours bestowed, 
and privileges conferred upon her, remember the 
consequences of their being abused by Jerusalem ; 
and let every individual do the same. 

25. Their habitation shall be desolate, and none 
shall dwell in their tents. 

Our Lord seems to have had this passage in hjs 
view, when he said to the Jews, "Behold, your house 
is left unto you desolate :" Matt, xxiii. 38. Jeru- 
salem was by the Roman armies destroyed from the 
foundations. It hath been since indeed rebuilt, and 
inhabited by Gentiles, by Christians, and by Saracens, 
but no more by the Jewish people. It is remarkable, 
that this verse is applied, Acts i. 20. to Judas, con- 
sidered as the head and representative of that 
apostate nation, which rejected and delivered up its 
Prince and Saviour to be crucified. " He was guide 



166 Commentary on Psalm LXIX. 

to them that took Jesus :" Act i. 16. The punish- 
ment therefore, as well as the sin of Israel, is pour- 
tray ed in his person, and the same prophecy is ap- 
plicable to him and to his countrymen*. 

26. For they persecute him whom thou hast smit- 
ten, and they talk to the grief of those whom thou 
hast wounded 'f. 

The cause of the foregoing calamities, inflicted 
on the Jews, is here assigned, namely, that instead of 
mourning and sympathizing with Messiah, in the day 
when Jehovah laid on him the iniquities of us all, 
and afflicted him for our sakes, they, by reproaches 
and blasphemies, aggravated his sufferings to the ut- 
termost ; and afterwards continued to use his dis- 
ciples in the same manner. It were to be wished, 
that the sorrows of the penitent, when wounded 
with a sense of sin, never subject him to the scorn 
and contempt of those who would be thought 
Christians. 

27. Thou wilt add iniquity to their iniquity ; and 
they shall not come into thy righteousness. 

As they added affliction to the afflictions of Christ, 
so God permitted J them to go on, blinded and de- 
serted, in their wickedness, " adding sin to sin," 
filling up the measure of their fathers, still obsti- 
nately refusing to come into the church, and partake 
of the *' righteousness" which is by faith. From all 
thy judgments, good Lord, deliver us; but, above 

* " Fiat habitatio eorum deserta" — De Juda proditore ex- 
ponitur, Acti. 20. Congruit etiam Judseis, eversa, Hieroso- 
lyma, quod Christus praedixerat : " Ecce relinquetur vobis 
domus vestra deserta." Luc. xiii. 35. JJossuet. 

f Datur his in verbis ratio longe maxima et gravissima, 
propter quam Judaei terra sua essent ejiciendi, ao nomine et 
prerogativis populi dei privandi, quia nirairum " eum perse- 
quuntur, quem a " Deo percussum" vident, hoc est quern 
videntjira Divina maxiraopere pressum, et ad summa a&j/Aowt» 
redactum. Vitkinga, Observat. Sacr. lib. ii. cap. 9. 

X Deserendo, et permittendo, non operandi ; ut Theologi 
norunt. Bcssuet. 



Commentary on Psalm lxix. 167 

all, from that which punishes one siu with another, 
and seals up the reprobate to destruction. 

28. They shall be blotted out of the book of the 
living, and not be written with the righteous. 

By " the book of the living," in which the names 
of the " righteous are written," is to be understood 
the register of the true servants and worshippers of 
God, of those who are "justified/' or made *\ righ- 
teous," through faith. In this register, the names 
of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the ancient fathers of 
the Israelitish race, with their true children, stand re- 
corded ; but the degenerate and apostate Jews have 
been long since " blotted out ;" they are no longer 
the peculium of heaven ; nor have they any part or 
portion in the inheritance of the sons of God. Thus 
Ezekiel : " They shall not be in the assembly of my 
people, nor shall they be written in the writing of 
the house of Israel :" xiii. 9. And our Lord, in his 
conversations with the Jews, took every opportunity 
to tell them, that they, for their unbelief, should be 
" cast out," and that the Gentiles, obeying the call 
of the Gospel, should come from all quarters of the 
world, and ** sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and 
Jacob, in the kingdom of God." 

29. But I am poor and sorrowful: let thy saving 
health, O God, or, thy salvation, shall, or, can, set 
me up on high. 

Messiah returns to the subject of his own suffer- 
ings, which were not a little enhanced by the consi- 
deration, that so many of his people would not be 
the better for them. " I am poor and sorrowful;" 
*' poor," for he was divested of his very garments ; 
" sorrowful," for he was covered over with stripes 
and wounds. But be knew the hour was coming, 
when the salvation of God would raise him from the 
dead, and set him up on high." Thus should a dis- 
ciple of Jesus depart out of the world, joyfully re- 
linquishing its goods, patiently bearing its evils, and 
confidently expecting a resurrection to glory. 



168 Commentary on Psalm lxix. 

30. I will -praise the name of God with a song, 
and magnify him with thanksgiving. 

Here, as in the xxiid, and many other Psalms, the 
scene changes from sorrow to joy ; from a state of 
suffering' to one of triumph ; from the passion to the 
resurrection. Jesus, risen from the dead, declares 
his resolution of praising and magnifying the Father, 
for the salvation of the world, happily accomplished 
by his labours and sufferings, which were now for ever 
at an end. The church does the same incessantly, 
on earth, and in heaven. 

31. This also shall please the Lord, better than 
an ox or bullock that hath horns and hoofs. 

A bullock was in its prime for sacrifice, under the 
law, when it began to put forth its " horns and 
hoofs." The infinite distance therefore, in point of 
value, between the best legal sacrifices, and those 
of obedience, love, and praise, as offered by Christ, 
and, through him, by his church, under the Gos- 
pel, is pointed out in this verse. See Psalm xl. 6, 
&c. 1. 23. 

32. The humble shall see this, and be glad: and 
your heart shall live that seek God: or, be seeking 
God, and your heart shall live. 

It is foretold, " that the " humble," or the " poor 
in spirit," i. e. the meek and lowly followers of the 
holy Jesus, should find everlasting joy and comfort 
in the glad tidings of salvation ; all mankind are 
exhorted to * seek after God," as manifested in the 
Gospel of his Son ; and the reward promised is " life 
spiritual and eternal*" 

33. For the Lord heareth the poor, and despiseth 
not his prisoners. 

An argument for our " seeking after God," is the 
experience of patriarchs, prophets, and saints, who 
in all ages have sought, and found him, by repentance 

* Haec et sequentia ad redemptionem per Christum, sub 
figura solutae captivitatis, videntur pertinere. Bossuet. 



Commentary on Psalm lxix. 169 

and faith: and that the Lord " despiseth not his pri- 
soners," is evident from what he did and suffered, to 
deliver their souls from the bondage of sin, their 
bodies from the prison of the grave, and both from 
the dungeon of hell. Therefore, 

34. Let the heaven and earth praise him, the seas 
and every thing that moveth therein. 

The mercies of God in Christ are such, that they 
cannot worthily be praised by any thing Jess than an 
universal chorus of the whole old and new creation ; 
and what should such a chorus celebrate, but those 
mercies by which all things have been made, pre- 
served, and redeemed ? 

35. For God will save Sion, and build the cities of 
JudaJi, that they, i. e. men, may dwell there, and 
have it in possession. 

The salvation and edification of the church fol- 
lowed the passion and resurrection of Christ. " God 
will save Sion," that is, the church, which at first 
consisted of the apostles, who were Jews, and others 
of that nation by them converted to the faith. 
" And build the cities of Judah," or cause churches 
to arise in all the world, which shall from thenceforth 
take the names, and inherit the privileges, of *' Israel 
and Judah ; that men," even such as God shall call 
from among the nations, ?f may dwell there," as 
citizens of the new Jerusalem, 4< and," instead of 
the rejected Jews, " have it in their possession." 

30. The seed also of his servants shall inherit it, 
and they that love his name shall dwell therein. 

The continuation of the church in the posterity of 
the faithful, is here predicted. Accordingly, the 
descendants of the proselyted Gentiles have been in 
possession of the Gospel privileges, for above 1700 
years. And thus it will be, while they abide in the 
faith, and " love the name," of Jesus. Should the 
Gentiles apostatize as the Jews did, and the Jews be 
converted as the Gentiles were, then the Gospel 
would go from the Gentiles to the Jews, #s before 



170 Commentary on Psalm LXXI. 



it went from the Jews to the Gentiles ; then would 
there "come out of Sion the Deliverer, to turn away 
ungodliness from Jacob." Rom. xi. 26. 



PSALM LXXI. 

To be used in the Visitation of the Sick. 

ARGUMENT. 

The Psalmist, sorely distressed in his old age (see 
ver. 9. and 18.), by the rebellion of Absalom, 
which was his great affliction at that period of life, 
ver. 1. prayeth for the divine assistance; pleading, 
2. God's righteousness, 3. and promise; 4. the 
iniquity of his persecutors ; 5, 6. the mercies 
vouchsafed him from his birth ; 7, 8. his being de- 
serted and given up by man ; 9. his old age; 10, 
11. the taunts and insults of his adversaries; 12. 
he repeateth his request; 13. prophesieth the 
downfall of his enemies; declareth, 14. his hope, 
15. his gratitude, 16. his faith ; 17, 18. wisheth to 
be preserved, that he might show forth the power 
and glory of God, whose righteousness and mar- 
vellous acts, 19. he extolleth, and thence, 20, 21. 
promiseth himself a final redemption from all his 
troubles, and a restoration to honour and comfort; 
when, 22 — 24. he shall sing and speak the praises 
of the Lord. 

1. In thee O Lord, do I put my trust; let me 
never be put to confusion. 

The promises of salvation are made to those who, 
renouncing all confidence in the world and them- 
selves. " trust," in God alone for it. For this reason 



Commentary on Psalm LXXI. 171 

the Psalmist so often begins his prayer with a decla- 
ration of " his faith," which is to the soul in affliction, 
what an anchor is to a ship in distress. 

2. Deliver me in thy righteousness, and cause me 
to escape : incline thine ear unto me, and save me. 

A second argument, here used, is the " righteous- 
ness" of God, who cannot but be faithful and just 
to his own gracious word. By that word, he had 
engaged to establish the temporal throne of David, 
and the eternal throne of the Son of David. And, 
by the same word, he has engaged to bring those 
who believe in him, through sufferings, to glory. 

3. Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may 
continually resort: thou hast given commandment 
to save me, for thou art my rock and my fortress. 

The protection of the Almighty, to which the 
troubled soul " resorts" by faith and prayer, is com- 
pared to that which a well-fortified castle, or town, 
affords to those within it, in time of war. And the 
plea, upon which this petition is enforced, is in a 
manner the same with the former, namely, the de- 
clared purpose of God to be the Saviour of his 
servants ; " Thou hast given commandment to save 
me." 

4. Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the 
wicked, out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel 
man* 

The divine assistance is implored by the Psalmist, 
thirdly, on the foot of the goodness of his cause, and 
the iniquity of his enemies. Such were Absalom, 
Ahithophel, &c. to David ; Judas and the Jews to 
Christ ; and such are the world, the flesh, and the 
devil, to the Christian. Against them he is to pray 
and fight continually ; ever remembering that wick- 
edness is at least as dangerous when it tempts, as 
when it persecutes ; and can smile, as well as frown, 
a man dead. 

5. For thou art my hope, O Lord God; thou art 
my trust from my youth. 6. By thee have I been 

I 2 



172 Commentary on Psalm lxxi. 

/widen up from the womb : thou art he that took me 
out of my mothers bowels ; my praise shall be conti- 
nually of thee. 

Former mercies are urged, as a fifth motive, for 
the divine goodness to continue those mercies. The 
watchful care of Heaven over us, at an age when we 
are able to take no care of ourselves, deserves con- 
sideration. The love of Jesus, shown in passing 
through a state of childhood for us, deserves a still 
more deep and devout consideration. 

7. I am as a wonder unto many : but thou art my 
strong refuge. 

David, banished from his kingdom, was regarded 
as a " wonder," or a prodigy of wretchedness ; 
Christ, in his state of humiliation upon earth, was a 
" sign," every where " spoken against," as Simeon 
foretold he would be : Luke ii. 34. The Christian, 
who lives by faith, who quits possession for reversion, 
and who chooses to suffer with his Saviour here, that 
he may reign with him hereafter, appears to the men 
of the world, as a monster of folly and enthusiasm. 
But God is the " strong refuge" of all such. 

8. Let my mouth be filled with thy praise, and with 
thy honour, all the day. 

Whatever men say, or think of him, the royal Pro- 
phet desires still to strengthen, and to delight himself, 
in doing the will, singing the praises, and setting forth 
the glory of God. Such likewise was thy desire, O 
blessed Jesus ! in the days of thy flesh. Ever grant 
that it may be ours. 

9. Cast me not off in the time of old age ; forsake 
me not when my strength faileth. 

David, mindful of the noble actions, which, through 
God's assistance, he had achieved in his youth, 
beseeches him not to desert his servant, when per- 
secuted by a rebellious son, in his" old age. The 
weaknesses and temptations peculiar to that time of 
life, render this a petition necessary for us all to 
make, before we are overtaken by it. The church 



Commentary on Psalm lxxi. 173 

findeth but too much occasion to make the same, now 
that she is sunk in years ; when faith languisheth, 
charity waxeth cold, and the infirmities of a spiritual 
old age are coming fast upon her. 

10. For mine enemies speak against me ; and they 
that lay wait for my soul, take counsel together, 11. 
Saying, God hath forsaken him: persecute and take 
him, for there is none to deliver him. 

They who saw David ascending mount Olivet in 
tears, when Absalom had driven him from Jerusalem, 
and they who beheld Jesus led forth out of the same 
Jerusalem, to be crucified on mount Calvary, were 
tempted to regard both the one and the other, as 
finally deserted by God. They who view the church, 
or any member thereof, under affliction and persecu- 
tion, are too frequently tempted to think the same, 
and to act accordingly ; though they are so plainly 
taught the contrary, by the restoration of the king of 
Israel, and the resurrection of the Son of God. 

12. O God, be not far from me : O my God, make 
haste to help 13. Let them, or, they shall, be con- 
founded and consumed that are against my soul; lei 
them, or, they shall, be covered with reproach and 
dishonour that seek my hurt. 

As the insolence of his persecutors increaseth, the 
distressed monarch crieth more earnestly unto God ; 
and is so far from relinquishing his hope, that, in the 
midst of his sorrows, he foreseeth and foretelleth the 
final confusion of his enemies. The Christian, who 
has faith in the promises, may do likewise, in the 
worst of times, and the worst of circumstances. For 
the day cometh, when all the workers of wickedness 
shall be destroyed, and " death and hell shall be cast 
into the lake of fire." Rev. xx. 14. 

14. But I will hope continually, and will yet praise 
thee more and more. 15. My mouth shall show forth 
thy righteousness and thy salvation all the day long : 
for 1 know not the numbers thereof. 

As there is no end to the loving kindness of 
I 3 



174 Commentary on Psalm LXXI« 

Jehovah, there should be none to our gratitude. The 
" hope" of a Christian " giveth songs in the night," 
and enableth him to be thankful, even in the dark 
season of affliction. Paul and Silas not only prayed, 
but also " sang praises to God, in a prison, at mid- 
night." Acts xvi. 25. 

16. / will go in the strength of the Lord God : J 
will make mention of thy righteousness, even of thine 
only. 

He who goeth to the battle against his spiritual 
enemies, should go, confiding not in his own 
" strength," but in that of the Lord God : not in 
his own " righteousness," but in that of his Re- 
deemer. Such an one engageth, with Omnipotence 
on his side, and cannot but be victorious. 

17. O God, thou hast taught me from my youth ; 
and hitherto have I declared thy wondrous works. 
18. Now also when I am old and grey-headed, O 
God, forsake me not : until I have showed thy 
strength unto this generation, and thy power to 
every one that is to come. 

It was the God of Israel, who " taught" David, as 
a warrior, to conquer, and, as a Psalmist, to de- 
clare the w ondrous works" of his great Benefactor. 
He requests to be preserved in his old age, until, by 
completing his victories, and his Psalms composed 
to celebrate them, he had " showed the strength and 
power of God," not only to the men of the " genera- 
tion" in which he lived, but also to " every one that 
should come," or arise in after times, and chant those 
divine hymns in the assemblies of the faithful, 
throughout all ages. Doth St. Paul wish to have 
his life continued upon earth ; it is only that he may 
edify the church, and glorify God. Otherwise, " it is 
far better," says he, " to depart, and to be with 
Christ." 

19. Thy righteousness, O God, is very high, who 
hast done great things: O God, who is like unto 
thee! 



Commentary on Psalm LXXI. 175 



What a force is now added to these words, by the 
actual exaltation of the righteous Saviour " very 
high" above all heavens, and by the " great things" 
which he hath " done" for our souls ! Let us think 
on these things, and we shall most affectionately say, 
with David, " O God, who is like unto thee !" De- 
lightful is thy love, O Lord Jesu, beyond all pleasure, 
more precious than much fine gold, and honourable 
above the thrones of the mighty ; The world lan- 
guished and fadeth away at thy presence, whose 
beauty is immortal, whose treasures diminish not, 
and whose glory endureth through the unnumbered 
ages of eternity. 

20. Thou which hast shoived me great and sore 
trouble, shalt quicken me again, and shalt bring me 
up again from the depths of the earth. 21. Thou 
shalt increase my greatness, and comfort me on 
every side. 

In David, delivered out of his troubles, and re- 
stored to his throne, we behold our Lord, after his 
" great and sore trouble, literally quickened, or re- 
vived, brought up again from the depths of the earth, 
increased in greatness, and comforted on every side." 
In him we were virtually, by his grace we are ac- 
tually, raised from sin and sorrow, to righteousness 
and comfort; and through his power we shall be 
raised, from dust and corruption, to glory and im- 
mortality. 

22. I will also praise thee with the psaltery ^ even 
thy truth, Omy God: unto thee will I sing with the 
harp, O thou Holy One of Israel ! 23. My lips 
shall greatly rejoice, when I sing unto thee: and my 
soul, which thou hast redeemed. 24. My tongue 
also shall talk of thy righteousness all the day long : 
for they are confounded, for they are brought unto 
shame, that seek my hurt. 

The truth of God, in accomplishing his promises, 
by the redemption of our souls, and the confusion of 
our spiritual enemies, is a subject which demands a 
I 4 



176 Commentary on Psalm lxxii. 

never-ceasing tribute of gratitude and love, of praise 
and thanksgiving. To celebrate it aright, with the 
melody of instruments, voices, and affections, all in 
perfect concord, is the duty and delight of the church 
militant ; which, when thus employed, affords the best 
resemblance of the church triumphant. 



PSALM LXXII. 
Prophetical of the Messiah. 
ARGUMENT. 

David, praying for Solomon, foretelleth his peaceful 
and glorious reign, and under that figure, in most 
lively and beautiful colours, portrayeth the king- 
dom of Messiah ; 1 — 4. its righteous administra- 
tion ; 5 its duration ; 6, 7. its blessings ; 8. its 
extent; 9 — 11. the accession of the Gentiles td 
it; 12 — 14. the redemption to be wrought, and, 

15. the prayers and praises to be offered up in it ; 

16. its miraculous increase and fruitfulness ; 17. 
its perpetuity and universality ; 18, 19. a doxo- 
logy sung to God for it. 

1. Give the king thy judgments, O God, and thy 
righteousness unto the king's son*. 2. He shall 
judge thy people with righteousness , and thy poor 
with judgment. 

In this prophetical prayer, the aged monarch of 

* The " king," and the " king's son," are the same person ; 
a character that belongs to none so properly as to Solomon, 
who was the first prince that was at the same time " king," 
and " son of a king." Mudge.— Dr. Chandler is of the same 
opinion. 



Commentary on Psalm lxxii. 177 

Israel, about to resign the kingdom into the hands ofc 
his son Solomon, makes unto God the request of a 
wise father for him. He asks such a portion of wis- 
dom and integrity from above, as might enable the 
young prince to govern aright the people of God, 
and to exhibit to the world a fair resemblance of that 
king of Israel, who was, in the fulness of time, to 
sit upon the throne of his father David Luke 
i. 32. " to reign in righteousness Isaiah xxxii. 1. 
and " to have all judgment committed unto him;" 
John v. 22. 

3. The mountains shall bring, or, bear, peace to 
the people, and the little hills, in, or, by, righteous- 
ness. 

In other words, peace, manifested by its conse- 
quence, plenteousness, sh#ll be upon all the moun- 
tains and little hills of Judea, by means of that righte- 
ous judgment which Solomon will execute in the 
land. And thus in the days of Messiah, " Beauti- 
ful upon the mountains were the feet of them that 
brought the glad tidings of peace ;" which the fruits 
of the Spirit, in the churches, plainly showed to have 
been derived from above, through the righteousness 
of the Redeemer, producing " peace on earth." 

4. He shall judge the poor of the people : he shall 
save the children of the needy ; and shall break in 
pieces the oppressor, 

It is the part of justice, in well-ordered govern- 
ments, to see that the " poor and needy have right ;" 
to break the teeth of " oppression," and pluck indi- 
gence from its devouring jaws. This Christ per- 
formed, when, having undertaken the cause of his 
people against the adversary, he " saved" them by 
his resurrection, and " broke in pieces" the power 
of the great oppressor. 

5. They shall fear thee as long as the sun and 
moon endure, throughout all generations. 

The kingdom of Solomon continued, in his own 
person, only for forty years ; but in his seed, that is, 
i 5 



178 Commentary on Psalm LXXll. 



Christ, it is established throughout all generations* 
He reigneth " over the house of Jacob for ever, and 
of his kingdom there shall be no end :" Luke i. 33. 
His dominion over the world by his providence, and 
in the church by the influences of his grace, is to be 
coeval with that of the celestial luminaries in nature. 
And when the " moon shall be confounded, and the 
sun ashamed," when the heavens shall be dissolved, 
and the earth burnt up, M the Lord of Hosts shall 
reign on mount Zmn," in the Jerusalem above, in 
glory everlasting. See Isaiah xxiv. 23. 

6. He shall come down like the rain upon the 
mown grass : as showers that water the earth. 

Refreshing and salutary, as the drops of heaven 
to the shorn and parched grass, is the mild adminis- 
tration of a wise and pious prince to his subjects. 
And what image can convey a better idea of those 
most beneficial and blessed effects, which followed 
the descent of the Son of God upon the earth, and 
that of the Spirit, at the day of Pentecost l The pro- 
phets abound with descriptions of those great events, 
couched in terms borrowed from the philosophy of 
rain and dew. See Isaiah xliv. 3. lv. 10. Hos. xiv. 5. 
Heb. vi. 7. In the last words of David, the reign 
of Messiah is described under this figure : M He 
shall be as the tender grass, springing out of the 
earth by clear shining after rain," 1 cannot help 
subjoining bishop Sherlock's masterly illustration of 
this passage—'* There cannot be a more lively image 
of a flourishing condition, than what is conveyed to 
us in these words. The grass, which is forced by 
the heat of the sun, before the ground is well pre- 
pared by rains, is weak and languid, and of a faint 
complexion ; but when clear shining succeeds the 
gentle showers of spring, the field puts forth its best 
strength, and is more beautifully arrayed, than eveu 
Solomon in all his glory." Disc. vol. v. p. 89. 

7. In his days shall the righteous flourish ; and 
abundance of peace, so long as the moon endureth. 

2 



Commentary on F } salnt LXXil. 179 

By means of rain and dew, the grass springeth out 
of the ground. In the kingdom of Solomon, through 
the influences of his wisdom, good men were en- 
couraged, righteousness flourished, and the land en- 
joyed tranquillity. In the days of Messiah, the fruit 
of the Spirit of righteousness, and the fruit of righ- 
teousness, was " abundance of peace." He was the 
true " Melchisedek," or J' King of righteousness," 
and therefore the true Solomon, the " King of Salem, 
the Prince of peace. ,, And HIS peace is to endure, 
when the moon shall have ceased to vary her appear- 
ances, and when a period shall be put to all sublunary 
vicissitudes. 

8. He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and 
from the river unto the ends of the earth, or, land. 

As applicable to the kingdom of Solomon, this 
verse describes the extent and limits of the promised 
" land ;" if it be interpreted of the wide extended 
empire of Christ, that empire knows no bounds, but 
those of the " earth" itself. The Hebrew word 
is often used for both, and as the dominion of Solo- 
mon represented that of a greater than Solomon, both 
are comprehended in the same words. And it is ob- 
servable, that when the prophet Zechariah foretels 
the advent of " the King of Sion," in great humility, 
" meek, and riding on an ass," he describes the ex- 
tent of his kingdom in these words — " His dominion 
shall be even from sea to sea, and from the river 
even to the ends of the earth." Zech. ix. 9, 10. 

9. They that dwell in the wilderness shall botv he- 
fore him : and his enemies shall lick the dust. 

Distant nations submitted themselves to the scep- 
tre, and prostrated themselves before the throne of 
Solomon, foreshowing the conversion of the Heathen 
world (in the figurative language of prophecy, fre- 
quently styled, " the wilderness") to the Gospel, and 
the lowly adoration to be made by penitent sinners, 
at the footstool of the King of Glory, They who 
take not the advantage of the day of grace, will feel 



180 Commentary o?i Psalm lxxii. 

the rod of his power in the day of vengeance, when 
his "enemies" shall be subjected to him; when 
death himself shall be destroyed ; and " dust shall 
be the serpent's meat." Isa. lx v. 25. Gen. iii.14. 

10. The kings of Tarshish, and of the isles, shall 
bring presents : the kings of Sheba and Seba shall 
offer gifts. 

This verse suggesteth to our meditation several 
curious and interesting particulars, all tending to one 
and the same end. As, 1. The munificent presents 
and immense treasures, brought to Solomon from 
Tarshish, and the isles of the Gentiles : 1 Kings x. 22. 
&c. 2. The coming of the queen of Sheba from the 
south, with her gifts and acknowledgments, to Jeru- 
salem. 3. The offerings made by the eastern magi, 
as the first-fruits of the Gentiles, to the Saviour of 
the world. And, lastly, the accession of the nations 
to the faith (even these " isles of the Gentiles,") 
bringing their glory and honour into the city of God. 
See Isa. xlix. lx. Rev. xxi. 24. 

11. Yea, all kings shall fall down before him : all 
nations shall serve him. 

It is said, 2 Chron. ix. that " all the kings of the 
earth sought the presence of Solomon, to hear his 
wisdom ; that he reigned over all the kings, from 
the river even unto the land of the Philistines, and 
to the borders of Egypt ; and that they brought unto 
him horses out of Egypt, and out of all lands." 
The dominion of Christ is universal; and it will ap- 
pear to be so at the last day ; when, before men and 
angels, he shall prove his claim to the title, " King 
of kings, and Lord of lords." 

12. For he shall deliver the needy when he crieth ; 
the poor also, and him that hath no helper. 13. He 
shall spare the poor and needy, and shall save the 
souls of the needy. 14. He shall redeem their soul 
from deceit and violence ; and precious shall their 
blood be in his sight. 

These three verses, considered as describing the 



Commentary on Psalm LXXII. 181 

just and merciful administration of Solomon, need 
no exposition. As prophetical of Messiah's reign, 
they may be thus connected wiih the context, and 
paraphrased — The kings and the nations of the earth 
shall accede to the church of Christ, induced so to 
do by the fame of his mercy, no less than by that of 
his majesty. They shall hear of the great deliverance 
wrought by him for the poor in spirit, who make their 
prayer unto him, confessing their sins, and acknow- 
ledging the inability of any creature, in heaven or 
earth, to recover them from their lost estate. These 
he shall spare, and pardon, and save from sin, and 
from death, and from hell. He shall, for this pur- 
pose, break the snares, and destroy the power, of 
their great oppressor the devil ; and so dear shall 
their blood be in his sight, that he shall shed his own 
for it ; after which, arising to a new and immortal 
life, he shall accomplish the eternal redemption of 
his servants. 

15. And he shall live y and to him shall be given of 
the gold of Sheba ; prayer also shall be made for 
him continually , and daily shall he be praised. 

As Solomons reign was long and prosperous, that 
of Messiah is everlasting and glorious : as the rich 
brought presents to the one; so the nations offered 
up themselves, their possessions, their souls and their 
bodies, to the other: as the former was continually 
" prayed for," and blessed by his subjects, who owed 
peace and plenteousness to his government ; so, with 
regard to the latter, prayer is made ever in the 
church, for the increase and consummation of his 
kingdom ; and " daily is he praised," by his people, 
for all the riches of grace, for all the comforts of the 
Spirit, and for all the hopes of glory, which they 
possess, and enjoy, through him. 

16. There shall be an handful of corn in the earth, 
upon the top of the mountains; the fruit thereof shall 
shake like Lebanon : and they of the city shall flourish 
like grass of the earth. 



182 Commentary on Psalm LxXii. 

It is here foretold, that in the days of Solomon, 
wonderful shall be the fruitfulness of Judea; of (he 
country in corn, by which the city is supported; and 
of the city and people, who, by their numbers, consti- 
tute the strength of the king. The fruitfulness of the 
country was to be so great, that from an " handful 
of corn," and that sown on the most barren spot, 
the " top of a mountain," should issue a produce, 
the ears of which would " shake" and wave in the 
winds, like the woods of " Lebanon ;" while in the 
city, afresh progeny of Israelites was still springing 
up, and advancing to maturity, like the unnumbered 
blades of grass, in a field which the Lord hath bless- 
ed : see 1 Kings iv. 20, &c. Such, under the reign 
of King Messiah, was the amazing increase of the 
" word," when sown in hearts barren before ; such 
the astonishing multiplication of citizens in the Chris- 
tian church : as it. is written, Acts vi. 7. M And 
the word of God increased ; and the number of the 
disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly," So let 
it be, blessed Lord, wheresoever thy Gospel is 
preached, throughout the world. 

17. His name shall endure for ever ; his name 
shall be continued, Heb. propagated, as long as the 
sun : and men shall be blessed in him ; all nations 
shall call him blessed. 

The person and kingdom of Solomon have been 
used all along as a channel, through which to convey 
a most illustrious prophecy concerning those of 
Christ. But here the type seems to be wholly ab- 
sorbed in the great antitype. His " name," his sav- 
ing name, " shall indeed endure for ever, propa- 
gated," with the faith, through all the generations 
of men, while the " sun," another of his representa- 
tives, shall continue to maintain his station in the 
heavens, and to diffuse his light upon the earth. In 
him, as it was promised to Abraham, shall all the 
true children of Abraham be " blessed" with the 
blessings of eternity; " all nations shall call him 



Commentary on Psalm lxxviii. 183 

blessed," as they are taught to do in the remaining 
verses of this exalted composition. 

18. Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, 
who only doeth wo7idrous things. 19. And blessed 
be his glorious name for ever : and let the whole 
earth be filled with his glory ; Amen, and Amen. 

Blessed, therefore, be thou, O Lord Jesu! for 
thou art the Lord God, even the God of Israel, who 
hast wrought such miracles of mercy, for the sal- 
vation of the church : and blessed, by the tongues of 
men and angels, be thy holy and glorious name ; 
and let the whole earth be filled with the amazingly 
transcendent and inconceivable majesty of thy most 
excellent glory, for evermore ! So be it, so be it. 



PSALM LXXVIII. 

ARGUMENT. 

This Psalm containeth a declaration of God's deal- 
ings with his people, and of their behaviour to him, 
in Egypt, in the wilderness, and after their settle- 
ment in Canaan, to the days of David. It is 
written for the use and admonition of Christians, 
who may here view, as in a glass, the mercies they 
have received, and the returns which, alas! they 
have but too often made for them. 

1. Give ear, O my people, to my law* incline your 
ears to the words of my mouth. 

In this verse, the Psalmist opens his commission, 
and speaks, as one having authority from above to 
instruct the world. He demands a large aud atten- 
tive audience, while, by a series of examples, he sets 
forth the goodness of God, and the ingratitude of 
man, for the admonition of succeeding ages, to the 



184 Commentary on Psalm LXXViil. 



end of time. St. Paul, speaking of the very trans- 
actions related in our Psalm, saith of them, " Now 
all these things happened unto them for ensamples, 
Gr. rviroi, types ; and they are written for our ad- 
monition, upon whom the ends of the world are 
come: 1 Cor. x. 11. We Christians, therefore, 
must consider ourselves as the " people" who are to 
" give ear to the law," or " doctrine," inculcated by 
the following epitome of the Israeli tish history ; WE 
must " incline our hearts to the words of" the 
Prophet's " mouth." 

2. I will open my mouth in a parable : I will utter 
dark sayings of old: 3. Which we have heard and 
known, and our fathers have told us. 

The Psalm, being in itself a plain narrative of 
facts, can contain nothing parabolical or enigmatical 
in it, unless those facts were, what St. Paul affirms 
them to have been, " ensamples," types, or repre- 
sentations of other facts relative to the Christian 
church. As facts, they were " heard and known," 
and handed down from father to son ; but, with re- 
spect to the instructions and admonitions compre- 
hended in them, and to be extracted by an applica- 
tion to parallel times and circumstances, they had 
the nature of a " parable," requiring wisdom and at- 
tention so to understand and apply them. It is ob- 
servable, that our Lord is, by St. Matthew, said to 
have spoken to the multitude altogether in parables, 
" that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the 
Prophet, saying, 1 will open my mouth in para- 
bles," &c. citing the second verse of the Psalm 
now before us : Matt. xiii. 35. If it doth not fol- 
low from this citation, that the Prophet actually 
speaks the Psalm in the person of Christ, yet thus 
much at least is evident from it, that the history of 
old Israel somewhat resembles the letter of the Gos- 
pel parables, and contains, shadowed out under it, 
the historv of a correspondent state of things in the 
1 



Commentary on Psalm LXXVIII. 185 



new Israel, or church Christian*. And although 
the Psalm, like a large and capacious palace, be laid 
out into a multitude of different apartments ; yet, 
perhaps, we may find, that the Scriptures of the New 
Testament will furnish us with a key, which will 
gain us admission into every one of them, and put 
us in possession of the treasures of divine wisdom 
therein deposited. 

4. We will not hide them from their children, 
shewing to the generation to come r Heb. the latter 
generation, the praises of the Lord, and his 
strength, and his wonderful works that he hath 
done. 

The writer of this Psalm is desirous that " the 
praises of Jehovah, his strength, and the wonder- 
ful works that he hath done/' an account of which 
had reached his own time, should be transmitted 
through all the periods of the Jewish economy, down 
to the ]YTtt* TT7, the " latter generation/' or genera- 
tion to arise in the *' latter days ;" the generation of 
the faithful, to be begotten unto God, from among 
the Gentiles, through the Gospel. Of this genera- 
tion are we, who now, in these words of the holy 
Psalmist, do from age to age " shew the praises of 
the Lord" our Saviour, • ■ and his strength and his 
wondrous works that he hath done" for us, as he 
promised and foreshowed in his dispensations of old 
time. The glorious theme was delivered by the 
Israelitish to the Christian church, and will be re- 
sumed in heaven, there for ever to employ the 
tongues of saints, and the harps of angels. 

5. For he established a testimony in Jacob, and 
appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our 
fathers, that they should make them known to their 

* " In parabolis" — Aliud dicit; aliud innuit; ac praeterito- 
rum specie futura praesagit. Id quoque ex persona Christi ; 
Matt. xiii. 35. Bossuet. 



186 Commentary on Psalm Lxxvm. 

children : 6. That the generation to come, or, latter 
generation, might know them, even the children 
which should be born : who should arise, and declare 
them to their children. 

The account of God's dealings with his people to 
be celebrated in our Psalm, begins with the " law," 
or '* testimony appointed and established in Israel," 
by the hand of Moses. Under these names are com- 
prehended, not only the precepts and ceremonies, 
but the several transactions to which they referred, 
and in commemoration of which they were instituted; 
as also that future salvation, to which they, as well 
as the transactions, had an aspect. Thus the pass- 
over, for instance, looked backward to the redemp- 
tion by Moses, and forward to that by Messiah. 
The law thus considered, as involving the Gospel 
within it, was, to understanding and pious Israelites, 
the fountain of wisdom and source of delight. They 
were to medidate therein day and night, and teach 
their children to do likewise ; until, with its types 
realized, and its prophecies accomplished, in the Re- 
deemer, it should go forth out of Sion in perfect 
beauty, and run and be glorified among the nations. 
The " law" and the " testimony" are now become 
ours ; and it is our duty to transmit them down to 
latest posterity, until Jesus shall return to judge- 
ment. 

7. That they might set their hope in God, and 
not forget the works of God, but keep his command- 
ments : 8. And might not be as their fathers, a 
stubborn and rebellious generation ; a generation 
Wmtset not their heart aright, and whose spirit was 
not steadfast with God. 

The reason is here assigned, why God gave Israel 
a law, and commanded that fathers should teach it 
to their children, and their children's children ; and 
the same reason holds with regard to the Gospel ; 
namely, that the chosen people, renouncing the 
world, with its idols and lusts, should believe and 



Commentary on Psalm LXXVin. 187 

" set their hope in" the true " God,'* the only Sa- 
viour ; that they should " not forget the works" which 
he hath wrought for their redemption ; and that, 
ever mindful of those works, they should love him, 
and " keep his commandments ;" not following the 
examples of the fathers of Israel, who proved u faith- 
less," and " rebellious" in the wilderness, when 
God had brought them out of Egypt. This is the 
very use St. Paul makes of those examples, " With 
some of them," says he, " God was not well pleased, 
for they were overthrown in the wilderness. Now 
these things were our examples," tvttoi fi&cov, " to 
the intent WE should not lust after evil things, or 
be idolaters, or commit fornication, &c. &c. as did 
some of them." 1 Cor x. 5. 

9. The children of Ephraim, being armed, and 
carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle. 

As the context treats concerning the behaviour of 
Israel in general, upon their coming out of Egypt ; 
and as the cowardice of the tribe of Ephraim in par- 
ticular, at that time, is no where mentioned, it is 
therefore most probable, that one tribe is here put 
for all the rest ; and that, under the figure of men, 
when prepared for battle, turning their backs at sight 
of an enemy, is pointed out that disposition of the 
Israelites, after all their promises, resolutions, and 
vows of serving and obeying God, to fall away, and 
relapse into sin, upon the first temptation, flow 
often is this the case with the Christian soldier ! Let 
not him, who hath but just put on his spiritual ar- 
mour, boast, like him who is putting it off, when the 
fight is over, and the victory obtained. 

10. They kept not the covenant of God, and re- 
fused to walk in his law; 11. And forgat his works, 
and his wonders, that he had showed them. 12. 
Marvellous things did he in the sight of their fathers, 
in the land of Mgypt, in the field of Zoan. 

These verses, it is apprehended, describe in plain 
terms, what was metaphorically expressed in the 



188 Commentary on Psalm lxxviii. 

verse preceding, namely, the proneuess of the Israel- 
ites to break the u covenant," transgress the "law/* 
and forget the " works" of God, even those asto- 
nishing works wrought in " Egypt/' and in " Zoan," 
its capital city. Let the Christian, who perhaps is 
amazed at the frequent rebellions of stiff-necked 
Israel, reflect a little within himself, how he has 
observed the baptismal " covenant," how he has 
" walked in the law," and with what gratitude he 
has remembered the " marvellous works" of Jesus. 

13. He divided the sea and caused them to pass 
through ; and he made the ivaters to stand as an 
heap. 

From the miracles wrought in Egypt, the Psalmist 
proceeds to what happened at the Exodus. And 
here he fails not to mention that great work of Al- 
mighty power, the division of the Red Sea, which 
was ever uppermost in the thoughts of a devout 
Israelite ; as the passage of the church in Christ 
her Saviour, through the grave and gate of death, 
ought never to depart from the memory of a Christian. 

14. In the day time also he led them with a cloud, 
and all the night with a light of fire. 

During the forty years pilgrimage of Israel in the 
wilderness, a preternatural column of fire and cloud 
attended the camp. It rested with them, and moved 
on before them, directing and conducting them in 
their journeys; in the night-season it was a bright 
and shining light ; and in the day-time it afforded a 
grateful cooling 3hade from the burning heat of those 
sultry deserts. Thus is Christ present with his 
church, while she sojourns upon earth, by his Word 
and his Spirit, guiding her steps, enlightening her 
darkness, and mitigating her sorrows. 

15. He clave the rocks in the wilderness, and gave 
them drink as out of the great depths. 16. He 
brought streams also out of the rock, and caused 
waters to run down like rivers. 

" Let us/' saith bishop Taylor, " by the aids 



Commentary on Psalm lxxviii. 189 

of memory and fancy, consider the children of Israel 
in the wilderness, in a barren and dry land where no 
water was, marching in dust and fire, not wet with 
the dew of heaven, but wholly without moisture, 
save only what dropped from their own brows. The 
air was fire, and the vermin was fire; the flying 
serpents were of the same kindred with the firma- 
ment ; their sting was a flame, their venom was a 
fever, and the fever a calenture; and the whole state 
of the Israelites' abode and travel was a little image 
of the day of judgment, when the elements shall 
melt with fervent heat. These men, like salaman- 
ders walking in fire, dry with heat, scorched with 
thirst, and made yet more thirsty by calling upon 
God for water ; suppose, I say, these thirsty souls, 
hearing Moses promise that he will smite the rock, 
and that a river should break forth from thence; 
observe how presently they run to the foot of the 
springing stone, thrusting forth their heads and 
tongues to meet the water, impatient of delay, cry- 
ing out that the water did not move, like light, ail 
at once : and then suppose the pleasure of their 
drink, the insatiableness of their desire, the immen- 
sity of their appetite ; they took in as much as they 
could, and they desired much more. This was their 
Sacrament, and this was their manner of receiving 
it. And if that water was a type of our Sacrament, 
or a Sacrament of the same secret blessing, then is 
their thirst a signification of our duty*." 

17. And they sinned yet more against him, by 
provoking the Most High in the wilderness. 18. 
And they tempted God in their hearts, by asking 
meat for their lust. 19. Yea, they spake against 
God; they said, Can God furnish a table in the 
wilderness ? 20. Behold, he smote the rock, that 
the waters gushed out and the streams overflowed ; 

* Worthy Communicant, p. 92. 



190 Commentary on Psalm lxxviii. 

can he give bread also, or provide flesh, for his 
people ? 

These frequent rebellions of Israel, with the pre- 
sence of God in the midst of them, and his miracles 
before their eyes, would seem incredible, had they 
been related any where but in the oracles of truth ; 
and did not the heart of every self-knowing Christian 
at once acknowledge the picture which is here drawn 
of human nature, its incredulity and perverseness. 
For hath not God delivered us from the house of 
bondage, and supported us in the wilderness ? is not 
Jesus present in the church, and are not his miracles 
of love and mercy continually before our eyes in the 
Word and in the Sacrament? Yet, who does not 
still " provoke" and " tempt the Most High ?" who 
does not ask provision for his " lust," when his 
necessities are satisfied ? and who, after all the proofs 
he has had of God's power and goodness, is not apt 
upon every appearance of danger, to be diffident and 
distrustful of his providence ? Before we condemn 
others, let us try ourselves, and judge righteous 
judgment. When David pronounced the words, 
The man that hath done this thing shall surely 
die," little did he think of being told, by his faithful 
monitor, " Thou art the man." Conscience, if duly 
interrogated, will be a Nathan to every one, and 
show him his own transgressions, in those of old 
Israel. 

21. Therefore the Lord heard this, and was 
wroth : so a fire was kindled against Jacob, and 
anger also came up against Israel; 22. Because 
they believed not in God, and trusted not in his sal- 
vation : 23. Though he had commanded the clouds 
from above, and opened the doors of heaven, 24. And 
had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had 
given them the corn of heaven. 25. Man did eat 
angels' food he sent them meat to the full. 

The discontents mentioned above, in verse 17, 
&c. were posterior not only to the miracle at the 



Commentary on Psalm lxxviij. 191 

rock, but also to the gift of " manna," which, after 
some little time, the people **, loathed," and de- 
manded " flesh," repenting that they had forsaken 
Egypt, where they fared more to their satisfaction : 
see Numb. xi. The cause of the discontents was 
infidelity, and the effect of them a display of God's 
indignation : " The Lord was wroth — because they 
believed not," &c. Now, as St. Paul styles the 
water " spiritual," or, sacramental " drink," proceed- 
ing from " a spiritual rock, which rock was Christ;" 
so he terms the manna, '? spiritual," or, sacramental 
meat : Si They did all eat of that same spiritual 
meat:" 1 Cor. x. 3. And our Lord, in John vi. 
discourses at large upon the subject, to convince the 
Jews, that God, who gave to their fathers manna in 
the wilderness, had in Him given them 5f the true 
bread" of eternal life, which the manna was intended 
to represent. " I am the living bread which came 
down from heaven ; if any man eat of this bread he 
shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give, is 
my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world." 
Christ crucified is the support of spiritual and eternal 
life; faith is the mouth by which this support is 
received ; manna was an outward and visible sign of 
it to the Israelites in the wilderness ; the eucharistic 
bread is such to Christians in the world. When that 
holy ordinance is celebrated, Si the doors of heaven 
are opened," spiritual food is given from above, 
and man eats Dnma or6, the bread of the " mighty 
ones ;" whether by " mighty ones" we understand 
those who eat the bread, and are invigorated thereby, 
or the blessed persons who give the bread to man. 
Suck is our manna, our sustenance in the wilderness, 
our viaticum, while on the road to Canaan. But 
how is it f* loathed," and despised, in comparison 
with " the flesh-pots of Egypt," by men who be- 
lieve not in God, and trust not in his salvation !" 
Will not the same cause produce the same effect! 
Will not " Jehovah hear this, and be wroth V Will 



192 Commentary on Psalm lxxviii. 

not " a fire be kindled against Jacob, and anger also 
come up against Israel V " For this cause," saith 
an apostle to the irreverent Corinthian receivers, 
*f manv are weak and sickly among you, and many 
sleep."" 1 Cor. xi. 30. 

26. He caused an east wind to blow in the heaven : 
and hy his power he brought in the south wind. 27. 
He rained flesh also upon them as dust, and feathered 
fowls like as the sand of the sea, 28. And he let 
it fall in the midst of their camp, round about their 
habitations. 29. So they did eat, and were well 
filled: for he gave them their own desire : 30. They 
were not estranged from their lust. But while the 
meat was yet in their mouths, 31. The wrath of God 
came upon them, and slew the fattest of them, and 
smote down the chosen men of Israel. 

The people, discontented with manna, asked, in 
a tumultuous and rebellious way, for flesh, at the 
same time distrusting the power of God to give it 
them in the wilderness. Flesh, however, was pro- 
cured. A wind, proper for the occasion, went forth 
from Jehovah, and brought a cloud of quails, which 
furnished the whole camp with a most delicious kind 
of flesh food, for the space of an entire month. But 
from the event we learn, that inordinate desires, 
though sometimes complied with, and satisfied by 
heaven, do not therefore go unpunished ; on the 
contrary, they are often punished by being com- 
plied with. The blessings, chosen for us by God, 
are blessings indeed, and, like the manna, bring no 
sorrows with them : but when we choose for ourselves, 
and are so unhappy as to be gratified in that choice, 
our portion too often proves a curse ; and, while the 
much-loved morsel is yet between our teeth, " the 
wrath of God comes upon us," for making a wrong 
choice. This will always be the case in the end, 
whenever earth is preferred to heaven, and sense to 
faith. 

32. For all this they sinned still, and believed not 



Commentary on Psalm LXXViil. 193 

for his wondrous works, 33. Therefore their days 
did he consume in vanity ; and their years in trouble. 

Mercies are followed by provocations ; provoca- 
tions are punished with judgments ; to judgments 
succeed repeated provocations, which call down fresh 
judgments. Immediately after the history of the 
quails, we read of a sedition stirred up by Aaron and 
Miriam, and of new murmurs at the report, brought 
by the spies, concerning the promised land; in con- 
sequence of which last, the nation had been destroy- 
ed, but for the intercession of Moses; and the whole 
generation of those who came out of Egypt, except 
Joshua and Caleb, actually fell in the wilderness, 
wasted and consumed by various plagues and calami- 
ties, during a forty years' peregrination : see Numb, 
xii. xiii. xiv. St. Jude makes mention of such a ge- 
neration in the early days of the Christian church, 
speakers of " hard speeches against Christ, murmur- 
ers, complainers, walking after their own lusts;" 
and he therefore puts converts " in remembrance, 
how that the Lord, having saved the people out of 
the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that be- 
lieved not:" Jude, verse 5. and 15. Because, not- 
withstanding all that Jesus has done, and continues 
to do for the church, men " sin yet more, and believe 
not for his wondrous works," but either despise the 
heavenly country, or despair of obtaining it, there- 
fore is the hand of God heavy upon the world ; 
" vanity and trouble" wear out the life of man ; and 
they who have passed the waters of baptism, fall 
short of the promised rest. 

34. When he slew them then they sought him: 
and they returned, and enquired early after God. 35. 
And they remembered that God was their rock, and 
the high God their redeemer, 36. Nevertheless 
they did flatter him with their mouth, and they lied 
unto him with their tongues. 37. For their heart 
vjas not right with him, neither were they steadfast 
in his covenant. 

K 



194 Commentary on Psalm lxxviii. 

Several instances of this behaviour occur in the 
history of Korah's rebellion and punishment, of the 
fiery serpents, and of Israel and Moab : see Numb, 
xvi. xx. xxi. xxv. The Israelites, in this particular, 
resembled their great persecutor Pharaoh ; their re- 
pentance, which came with the divine judgments, 
went also away with them, and appeared no more. 
By night the dew falleth from heaven, and refresheth 
the weary ground, and causeth the green herb and 
the flower of the field to revive and spring ; but in 
the morning the sun ariseth with a burning heat, and 
presently the dew is evaporated, the grass wither- 
eth, the flower fadeth, and the ground again becom- 
eth parched and dry as before. Thus it is with man. 
Adversity is the night, and grace is the dew, by 
which his heart is made tender and religious, and 
good resolutions are formed, and begin to shoot; 
but returning prosperity has the force and effect 
of a summer sun: at its presence piety vanisheth, 
resolutions come to nothing, and the heart is once 
more hardened. " O Ephraim," exclaims Jehovah 
by his prophet, " what shall I do unto thee ? O Ju- 
dah, what shall I do unto thee ? for your goodness is 
as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it passeth 
away ;" Hos. vi. 4. Who, that hath been conver- 
sant in the house of mourning, and about the bed of 
sickness, but must have seen frequent instances of 
a temporary and deceitful repentance? Whose heart 
doth not reproach him with some of these backslid- 
ings of Israel? In the day, therefore, of health, and 
strength, and prosperity, before the indignation of 
Heaven break forth, and the right-aiming thunder- 
bolts fly abroad, from a motive of love, not of fear, 
let us " seek early after God, and return from our 
sins, remembering the rock of our salvation, and the 
high God, our Redeemer." Thus may we entertain 
some hope, that our conversion is sincere ; that we 
do not " flatter and lie" unto our Maker; that our 
ei heart is right with him," and we shall continue 



Commentary on Psalm lxxviii. 195 

" steadfast in his covenant." And then, a plant that 
is set and lives in the heat of the day, how will it 
thrive and flourish under the cool and moist influences 
of night ! 

38. But he being full of compassion, forgave their 
iniquity, and destroyed them not : yea many a time 
turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his 
wrath. 39. For he remembered that they were but 
flesh ; a wind, or, breath, that passeth away, and 
comet h not again. 

Had God " stirred up all his wrath," the Israelites 
must have been exterminated in the wilderness. But 
then the promises made to Abraham of mercy and 
'' compassion" to them, and by them to all mankind, 
had failed. Therefore they were " forgiven," and 
not " destroyed :" judgment was executed from time 
to time, upon the person of offenders ; but still a 
remnant was left; the nation subsisted, until the 
Seed came to whom the promise was made. Nay, 
although, in consequence of their last and greatest 
crime, their polity was subverted with their city and 
temple, the race is yet marvellously preserved; and, 
we trust, preserved for mercy to be shown them in 
the last days. Be not angry, O Lord Jesus, for ever 
with them, or with us; but remember of what ma- 
terials we are made, and into what a state we are 
fallen ; how weak and how frail we are ; how liable 
to be seduced into sin, and blinded by error: re- 
member this, O Lord, and forgive us : and teach us 
to remember it, that we may forgive one another. 

40. How oft did they provoke him in the wilder- 
ness, and grieve him in the desert ! 41. Yea, they 
turned back, and tempted God, and limited the Holy 
One of Israel. 42 They remembered not his hand, 
nor the day when he delivered them from the hand of 
the enemy : 43. How he had wrought his signs in 
Egypt, and his wonders in the field of Zoan. 

The question which the Psalmist here asks, con- 
cerning Israel in the wilderness, is elsewhere asked 
k2 



196 Commentary on Psalm lxxviii. 

by him concerning mankind in general: "Who can 
tell how oft he offendeth?" Ps. xix. 12. God in- 
forms Moses, who had interceded for the peole, and, 
in the name of the great Mediator, obtained their 
pardon, that " those men which had seen his glory, 
and his miracles which he did in Egypt and in the 
wilderness, had tempted him ten times, and had not 
hearkened to his voice:" Numb. xiv. 22. Forget- 
fulness of the mercies of redemption is the begin- 
ning of sin; and though every one knows how to re- 
sent and detest the crime of ingratitude in another, 
he yet thinks that his best benefactor will overlook 
the most flagrant instances of it in himself. 

44. And had turned their rivers into blood; and 
their floods, that they could ?wt drink. 45. He sent 
divers sorts of flies, Heb. a mixture, whether of 
beasts, or insects, noisome and destructive, among 
the?n, which devoured them; and frogs which des- 
troyed them. 46. He gave also their increase unto 
the caterpillar, and tluir labour unto the locust. 
47. He destroyed their vines with hail, and their 
sycamore-trees with frost. 48. He gave up their 
cattle also to the hail, and their flocks to hot thun- 
derbolts, or, flashes of lightning. 

The Psalm goes back to the subject of Israelitish 
ingratitude, mentioned at the beginning, verse 11, 
12. in order to introduce an account of the miracles 
wrought in Egypt previous to the exodus. These 
miracles were intended to evince the superiority of 
Jehovah over the elements and powers of nature, 
which at that time were objects of worship amongst 
the Egyptians, but plainly appeared to act at the 
command of Moses, in subordination to their great 
Creator, the God of the Hebrews. In the heavens, 
on the earth, and in the waters, supremacy and inde- 
pendency were demonstrated to belong to him only : 
fire and air, thunder and lightning, wind, rain, and 
hail, obeyed his word : rivers became blood, and their 
inhabitants perished ; insects and animals left their 



Commentary on Psalm lxxviii. 197 

wonted habitations, to destroy vegetables, or torment 
man : so that wherever the gods of Egypt were sup- 
posed to reside, and to exert their influences in favour 
of their votaries, in all places, and all circumstances, 
victory declared for Jehovah. Hence modern as 
well as ancient idolators may learn not to put their 
trust in the world, but in him who made, and who can 
and will destroy, it; whose power can render the 
most insignificant of his creatures instruments of his 
vengeance, and, in a moment, arm all the elements 
against sinners; and whose mercy will employ that 
power in the final salvation of the church; when, as 
the author of the book of Wisdom expresseth it, 
'* He shall make the creature his weapon for the 
revenge of his enemies, and the world shall fight for 
him against the unwise:" Wisdom v. 17. 20. The 
curious and striking reflections which that author 
makes on the plagues of Egypt, in chap. xi. xvii. 
xviii. xix. are well worthy an attentive perusal. It 
is also to be observed, that St. John describes the 
judgments of the last days in terms plainly alluding 
to those, poured out upon the Egyptians, " as locusts 
and frogs, blood and darkness," &c. See Rev. ix. 
and xvi. et al. Under these images are represented, 
false teachers and erroneous doctrines, carnality and 
ignorance, and, in a word, whatever contributes to 
ravage the moral or spiritual world, to deface the 
beauty of holiness, and destroy the fruits of faith. 
And of all the divine judgments, these are by far the 
most dreadful, though generally the least dreaded. 

49. He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger, 
wrath, and indignation, and trouble, by sending evil 
angels among them. 

Some of the Egyptian plagues having been speci- 
fied in the foregoing verses, others of them are here 
thrown together, and the whole scene is affirmed to 
have been a full display of wrath and vengeance, 
executed upon the oppressors of the church by 
DUD D^WD, " evil angels, agents, or messengers : ? ' 



198 Commentary on Psalm Lxxvni. 

whether by this expression we understand the ma- 
terial instruments of divine displeasure; or angels 
employed as ministers of vengeance ; or the actual 
appearance and ministration of evil spirits, suffered 
to torment the wicked in this world, as they certainly 
will do in the next. Tradition seems to have fa- 
voured this last opinion, since the author of the book 
of Wisdom, above referred to, describes the Egyp- 
tian darkness as a kind of temporary hell, in which 
there appeared to the wicked, whose consciences 
suggested to them every thing that was horrible, " a 
tire kindled of itself very dreadful; they were scared 
with beasts that passed by, and hissing of serpents ; 
and they were vexed with monstrous apparitions, 
so that they fainted and died for fear; while over 
them was spread a heavy night, an image of that 
darkness which should afterwards receive them." — 
Wisdom xvii. 

50. He made a way to his anger; he spared not 
their soul from death, but gave their life over to the 
pestilence ; 51. And smote all the first-born in Egypt; 
the chief of their strength in the tabernacles of Ham. 

The last plague was the death of the first-born both 
of man and beast; Exod. xii. 29. when God, having 
removed every obstacle that mercy had thrown in the 
path of justice, " made a way to his indignation," 
which then rushed forth like a fiery stream. An un- 
limited commission was given to the destroyer, who 
at midnight passed through the land, and gave the 
fatal stroke in every house. " While all things, O 
Lord, were in quiet silence, and that night was in the 
midst of her swift course, thine Almighty word 
leaped down from heaven out of thy royal throne, as 
a fierce man of war into the midst of a land of de- 
struction, and brought thine unfeigned commandment 
as a sharp sword, and, standing up, filled all things 
with death: and it touched the heaven, but it stood 
upon the earth:" Wisdom xviii. 14. Pharaoh and 
all his servants rose up in the night; there was a 



Commentary on Psalm hxxv ill. 199 

great cry throughout all the land of Egypt ; and uni- 
versal consternation reigned, inferior only to that 
which is to extend its empire over the world, when 
" the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be 
raised." May we be saved, like Israel, in that hour, 
through the blood of the true paschal Lamb, slain to 
take away the sins of the world ! " When I see the 
blood," says Jehovah to his people, " I will pass over 
you." 

52. But made his own people to go forth like 
sheep; and guided them in the wilderness like a flock : 
53. And he led them on safely, so that they feared 
not; hut the sea overwhelmed their enemies. 54. 
And he brought them to the border of his sanctuary, 
even to this mountain, which his right hand had pur- 
chased. 55. He cast out the heathen also before 
them and divided them an inheritance by line, and 
made the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents. 

Having related the punishments inflicted on 
Egypt, the Psalmist returns to those mercies ex- 
perienced by the Israelites, when God overthrew 
their enemies, took them under his protection, fed 
and conducted them in the wilderness, brought them 
to the promised land, expelled the heathen, settled 
his people, and at length fixed his residence on 
mount Sion, which is represented as the conquest 
and acquisition of his own arm ; since the victories 
of Joshua, &c. were all owing to the divine presence 
and assistance. The Christian church, after her 
redemption by " the blood of the Lamb," passed 300 
years in a state of minority, as it were, and under 
persecution, which, with allusion to what befel 
Israel of old, is called in the Revelation, her flight 
and abode in the wilderness: Rev. xii. 6. At 
length the true " Joshua," or Jesus, " brought" 
her u into the possession of the Gentiles ;" see Acts, 
vii. 45. and she enjoyed a temporary rest and pros- 
perity. But no terrestrial Canaan, no secular advan- 
tages should make us forget, as the Jews did, and as 
K 4 



200 Commentary on Psalm lxxviii* 

Christians are apt to do, that the church is in the 
wilderness^ while she is in the world ; and that 
" there remaineth yet" another and far more glorious 
* ( rest for the people of God," after which they 
ought ever to be aspiring. See Heb. iv. 9. 

56. Yet^ they tempted and provoked the most 
high God, and kept not his testimonies: 57. But 
turned back, and dealt unfaithfully like their fa- 
thers : they were turned aside like a deceitful bow. 
58. For they provoked him to anger with their high 
places, and moved him to jealousy vjith their graven 
images. 

The Israelites when settled in the promised land, 
soon shewed themselves to be the genuine descend- 
ants of those men who tempted God in the desert. 
We can hardly read two chapters in the book of 
Judges, but we meet with the words, " And the 
children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the 
Lord." For this their frequent revolting they are 
compared to " a deceitful bow," which when put to 
the trial, is sure to disappoint the archer, either 
dropping the arrow at his feet, or carrying it wide of 
the mark. Their zeal and love were either wholly 
relaxed and enervated by sensuality and indolence, 
or else turned aside, and misplaced on false objects 
of worship. Thus, in the present decline x>f reli- 
gion, the devotion of the Romanists hath attached 
itself to saints, angels and images ; while that of Pro- 
testants sleepeth, and must be awakened. In what 
manner, is known to God only. 

59. When God heard this, he was wroth, and 
greatly abhorred Israel : 60. So that he forsook the 
tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent which he placed among 
men ; 61. And delivered his strength into captivity, 
and his glory into the enemy's hand. 

Rebellion against God, will, sooner or later, draw 
down his vengeance, and cause the most beloved na- 
tion to be " abhorred" by him : he will forsake the 
place of his residence, " the tent placed among men," 



Commentary on Psalm lxxviii. 201 

where he dwelleth by his Spirit ; and the church, by 
which his " strength" and his ' ' glory" are manifested 
to the world, shall go " into captivity, and the ene- 
my's hand." All this we are taught by that which 
came to pass in Israel, when, for the sins of priests 
and people, the ark of God, which then abode in 
Shiloh, was suffered to fall into the hands of the 
Philistines : 1 Sam. iv. The present state of Jeru- 
salem, and of all the once flourishing Eastern and 
African churches, speaks aloud the same awful and 
concerning truth. " He that hath ears to hear, let 
him hear." 

62. He gave his people owr also to the sword: and 
was wroth with his inheritance, 63. The fire con~ 
sumed their young men; and their maidens were 
not given to marriage. 64. Their priests fell by the 
sword; and their widows made no lamentation. 

These verses refer to the slaughter of Israel by the 
Philistines, which was an effect of divine wrath, com- 
pared here, as elsewhere, to a " consuming fire 
they refer likewise to the death of old Eli, of Hophni 
and Phinehas, and the widow of Phinehas, who 
expired in childbed, on hearing the mournful news : 
1 Sam. iv. History abounds with the tragical 
stories of wars and captivities : Scripture informs us, 
they are the judgments of God against sin. But 
calamities affect us not, till they become our own : it 
is well if they reform us, even when they do become 
so. 

65. Then the Lord awaked, as one out of sleep 
and like a mighty man, that shouteth, by reason of 
wine. 

While, by God's permission, the Philistines were 
chastising his people for their sins, he held his peace 
and seemed unconcerned, as one asleep. But when 
due chastisement has brought the delinquents to 
themselves, the cries of penitent Israel awakened as 
it were, and called forth the zeal of the Lord of 
hosts, to vindicate his honour and deliver his ser* 
K 5 



202 Commentary on Psalm LXxvili. 

vants : and then the vigour of his operations was 
such, as might be compared to the alacrity and cou- 
rage of a mighty champion, when, refreshed and in- 
spirited by wine, he attacks his adversaries and bears 
down all before him. Under all our sufferings, let 
us rest contented with this assurance, that God acts 
the part of a father ; and will therefore remove the 
rod, when it has answered the end proposed. 

66. And he smote his enemies in the hinder parts : 
he put them to a perpetual reproach. 

The former clause of this verse may be rendered, 
" And he repulsed, or, drove, his enemies back 
as Psalm ix. 3. " When mine enemies are turned 
*' back;" the word "TTTN being the same in both 
places. But as that part of the sacred history is 
here alluded to, in which the Philistines are said to 
have been plagued with " emerods," or hemorrhoids, 
while the ark was amongst them, the passage is ge- 
nerally rendered, as in our traslation, and supposed 
to intend that particular plague. Thus much, how- 
ever, is certain, that Dagon fell before the ark, which 
his worshippers were glad to send back, with acknow- 
ledgments of the vengeance inflicted on them by the 
superior power of the God of Israel, who could 
punish, where and when, and how he pleased. See 
1 Sam. v. vi. 

67. Moreover he refused the tabernacle of Joseph, 
and chose not the tribe of Ephraim; 68. But chose 
the tribe of Judah, the mount Sion which he loved* 
69. And he built his sanctuary like high palaces, 
like the earth which he hath established for ever. 

The ark, after its return, went no more to Shilob, 
which was in the tribe of Ephraim, the son of Joseph, 
but was brought first to Kiriathaim, 1 Sam. vi. 21. 
a city of the tribe of Judah, and from thence, after a 
short stay at the house of Obed Edom, to mount 
Sion, 1 Chron. xiv. and xv. which was the chosen 
and highly favoured mount ; where was afterwards 
erected, by Solomon, a magnificent and permanent 



Commentary on Psalm lxxviii. 203 



habitation for the God of Jacob, during the continu- 
ance of the old dispensation ; a resemblance of that 
eternal temple in which all the fulness of the God- 
head hath since dwelt bodily. The divine presence 
removed at this time to the tribe of J udah, because 
out of that tribe, after the rejection of Saul, came the 
great representative, as well as progenitor, of King 
Messiah. 

70. He chose David also his servant, and took 
him from the sheep-folds : 71. From following the 
ewes great with young, he brought him to feed Ja- 
cob his people, and Israel his inheritance : 72. So 
he fed them according to the integrity of his heart, 
and guided them by the skilfulness of his hands. 

The call of David from a sheep-fold to a throne 
teacheth us, that he who hath showed himself faith- 
ful in a few and small concerns, is worthy of promo- 
tion to more and more important cares ; that the 
qualifications requisite for the due discharge of high 
offices are best learned, at first, in an inferior station, 
especially if it be one that will inure to labour 
and vigilance ; and that kings are to consider them- 
selves as " shepherds which consideration would 
perhaps teach them their duty better than all the 
precepts in the world. From the last verse, relative 
to David's manner of conducting himself after his 
advancement, we learn that integrity and discretion, 
when they meet in the same person, form a complete 
ruler, and one fit to represent that blessed person 
who entered, like his father David, through suffer- 
ings into his glory ; who governeth his church in 
wisdom and righteousness ; and of whom it is said, 
by the evangelical prophet, " He shall feed his flock 
like a shepherd, he shall gather the lambs with his 
arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently 
lead those that are with young." Isa. xl. 11. . 



K 6 



204 Commentary on Psalm lxxxv, 



PSALM LXXXV. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Christmas-day. 

ARGUMENT. 

This Psalm, appointed by the church to be used on 
Christmas day, 1 — 3. celebrateth the redemption 
of the Israel of God from their spiritual captivity 
under sin and death ; 4 — 7. teacheth us to pray 
for the full accomplishment of that redemption in 
ourselves ; 8 — 11. describeth the incarnation of 
Christ with the joyful meeting- of Mercy and Truth, 
Righteousness and Peace, at his birth, and 12, 13. 
the blessed effects of his advent. 

1. Lord, Ihou hast been favourable unto thy 
land: thou hast brought back the captivity of Ja- 
cob. 2. Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy peo- 
ple, thou hust covered all their sin. 3. Thou 
hast taken away all thy wrath: thou hast turned 
thyselfy*ro?w the fierceness of thine anger. 

These three verses speak of the deliverance from 
captivity, as already brought about ; whereas, in 
the subsequent parts of the Psalm, it is prayed for 
and predicted, as a thing future. To account for 
this, some suppose that the Psalmist first returns 
thanks for a temporal redemption, and then prophe- 
sies of the spiritual salvation by Messiah. Others 
are of opinion, that the same eternal redemption is 
spoken ©f throughout, but represented in the begin- 
ning of the Psalm, as already accomplished in the 
divine decree, though the eventual completion was 
yet to come. The difficulty, perhaps, may be re- 
moved by rendering these first three verses in the 
present tame; " Lord thou art favourable to thy 
land, thou bringest back the captivity of thy people." 



Commentary on Psalm LXXXV. 305 

&€. that is, Thou art the God whose property it is 
to do this, and to shew such mercy to thy people, 
who therefore call upon thee for the same. But, in- 
deed to us Christians, who now use the Psalm, the 
difference is not material ; since a part of our re- 
demption is past, and a part of it is yet to come, for 
the hastening of which latter we daily pray. God 
hath already been exceedingly gracious and " favour- 
able" to the whole *' earth/' in " bringing back," 
by the resurrection of J esus, the " spiritual captivity 
of" his people; he hath himself, in Christ, " borne," 
and so taken away, '* the iniquity of his people;" he 
hath " covered all their sins," that they should no 
more appear in judgment against them : propi- 
tiated by the Son of his love, he hath removed his 
" wrath," and " turned himself from the fierceness 
of his anger." So exactly and literally do these 
words describe the means and method of G ospel sal- 
vation, that a Christian can hardly affix any other 
ideas to them. 

4. Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause 
thine anger towards us to cease. 5. Wilt thou be 
angry with us for ever ? Wilt thou draw out thine 
anger to all generations ? 6. Wilt thou not revive 
us again, that thy 'people may rejoice in thee? 
7. Show us thy mercy, O Lord, and grant us thy 
salvation. 

The ancient church is here introduced as peti- 
tioning for the continuation and completion of those 
blessings which had been mentioned in the foregoing 
verses, namely, that God would *' turn" his people 
from their captivity, and " cause his anger towards 
them to cease ;" that he would " revive" them from 
sin and sorrow, and give them occasion to " rejoice 
in him," their mighty deliverer; that he would " show 
them" openly that " mercy" of which they had " so 
often heard," and " grant them that salvation," or 
that " Saviour," that Jesus, who had been so long 
promised to mankind. And although it be true that 



206 Commentary on Psalm lxxxv. 

Jesus Christ is come in the flesh, and hath virtually 
procured all these blessings for the church, yet do 
*• we" still continue to pray, in the same words, for 
the actual application of them all to ourselves, by 
the conversion of our hearts, the justification of our 
persons, the sanctification of our souls, and the glori- 
fication of our bodies. For this last blessing of re- 
demption, " the whole creation waiteth, groaning, 
and travailing in pain together, until now," Rom. 
viii. 22. 

8. I will hear what God the Lord will speak : 
for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his 
saints ; but let them not turn again to folly : or, 
that they may not turn again to folly. 

The Prophet having prayed, in the name of the 
church, that Jehovah would " shew them his mercy, 
and grant them his salvation," declares himself re- 
solved, concerning this " salvation, to enquire and 
search diligently, what, or what manner of time the 
Spirit of Christ which was in him did signify, when 
it testified beforehand the coming of Christ, and the 
glory that should follow ;" see 1 Pet. i. 10. he would 
attend to " what God the Lord should say," and re- 
port it to the world. Now, what was the message 
which the prophets had commission to deliver from 
God, but that he would " speak peace," or recon- 
ciliation through a Saviour, " to his people, and to his 
saints V The Gospel is accordingly styled by St. 
Peter, " the word which God sent unto the children 
of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ :" Acts x. 
36. And what was the end of this reconciliation be- 
tween God and men, but that men should become 
and continue the servants of God ; that, being washed 
from their sins by the blood of Christ, and renewed 
in their minds by the grace of Christ, they should 
walk in the paths of wisdom and holiness, and " turn 
not again to the folly" they had renounced ? 

9. Surely his salvation is nigh them that fear him, 
that glory may dwell in our land. 



Commentary on Psalm lxxxv. 207 

God, who " calleth things that be not as though 
they were," teacheth his prophets to do likewise. 
The Psalmist therefore speaks with assurance of the 
" Saviour," as if he then saw him before his eyes, 
healing, by the word of his power, the bodies and 
the souls of men upon earth, and manifesting forth 
his " glory," in human nature, to all such as, with a 
holy " fear," and filial reverence, believed on him. 
St. John himself hardly useth plainer language when 
he saith, '* the Word was made flesh, and dwelt, or 
tabernacled among us ; and we beheld his glory, the 
glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of 
grace and truth ;" John i. 14. The body of Christ 
was the true " tabernacle," or temple ; his Divinity 
was the glory which resided there, and filled that 
holy place. The church is his mystical M body;" by 
his Spirit he now and ever " dwelleth in our land ; 
and his salvation is always nigh them that fear him 
as saith the holy Virgin in her song. " His mercy is 
on them that fear him, throughout all generations." 

10. Mercy and truth are met together : righteous- 
ness and peace have kissed each other. 11. Truth 
shall spring out of the earth ; and righteousness shall 
look down from heaven. 

These four divine attributes parted at the fall of 
Adam, and met again at the birth of Christ. Mercy 
was ever inclined to save man, and Peace could not 
be his enemy ; but Truth exacted the performance 
of God's threat, '* The soul that sinneth, it shall 
die ;" and Righteousness could not but give to every 
one his due. Jehovah must be true in all his ways, 
and righteous in all his works. Now there is no re- 
ligion upon earth, except the Christian, which can 
satisfy the demands of all these claimants, and re- 
store an union between them ; which can show how 
God's word can be true, and his work just, and the 
sinner, notwithstanding, find mercy, and obtain peace. 
Mahomet's prayer, were it the prayer of a righteous 
man and a prophet, could not satisfy divine justice; 



&08 Commentary on Psalm LXXXV* 

the blood of bulls and goats was always insufficient 
for that purpose, being a figure only for the time 
then present, which ceased of course when the reality 
appeared. " Sacrifice and burnt-offering thou would- 
est not ; then said I, Lo, I come." A God incarnate 
reconciled all things in heaven and earth. When 
Christ appeared m our nature, the promise was ful- 
filled, and " Truth sprang out of the earth." And 
now Righteousness, " looking down from heaven," 
beheld in him every thing that she required ; an un- 
defined birth, a holy life, an innocent death; a spirit 
and a mouth without guile, a soul and a body with- 
out sin. She saw, and was satisfied, and returned 
to earth. Thus all the four parties met again in per- 
fect harmony : Truth ran to Mercy, and embraced 
her ; Righteousness to Peace, and kissed her. And 
this could happen only at the birth of Jesus, in whom 
** the tender Mercy of our God visited us, and who 
is the Truth ; who is made unto us Righteousness, 
and who is our Peace." See Luke i. 78. John xiv. 
6. 1 Cor. i. 30. Ephes. ii. 14. Those that are thus 
joined, as attributes, in Christ, ought not, as virtues, 
to be separated in a Christian, who may learn how 
to resemble his blessed Lord and Master, by observ- 
ing that short, but complete, rule of life, compre- 
hended in the few following words : Show Mercy, and 
speak Truth : do Righteousness, and follow Peace. 
See St. Bernard, in his Sermon on the Annunciation; 
and, from him, bishop Andrews on these two verses 
of our Psalm *, 

12. Yea, the Lord shall give that which is good : 
and our land shall yield her increase. 

Unless God vouchsafe a gracious rain from above, 
the earth cannot " yield her increase." The effects 

* Solute captivitate, felicem populi statum designat, omrii 
bonorum copia et virtutibus florentis ; quae maxime impleta 
sunt, postquam Christus, ipsa Veritas, idemque pax nostra, 
terra ortus est. Bossuet. 



Commentary on Psalm lxxxv. 209 

of the incarnation of Christ, the descent of the Spirit, 
and the publication of the Gospel among men, are 
frequently set forth in Scripture under images bor- 
rowed from that fruitfulness caused in the earth by 
the rain of heaven. Thus Isaiah : " Drop down, ye 
heavens from above, and let the skies pour down 
righteousness : let the earth open, and let them bring 
forth salvation, and let righteousness spring up toge- 
ther, xlv. 8. I will pour water upon him that is 
thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground : I will pour 
my Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine 
offspring. And they shall spring up as among the 
grass, as willows by the water-courses, xliv. 3. As 
the rain cometh down from heaven, and watereth the 
earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud ; so shall 
my word be," &c. Iv. 10. Give us evermore, O 
Lord, " that which is good, that our land may yield 
her increase give us that good gift, the gift of thy 
Spirit, that we be e< neither barren nor unfruitful in 
the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." 2 Pet. 
i. 8. 

13. Righteousness shall go before him, and shall 
set us in the may of his steps ; or, and shall set his 
steps in the way. 

Upon the appearance of the Redeemer, " Righte- 
ousness" is represented as " going before him," like 
his harbinger the Baptist, to prepare and make ready 
his way. In that way, the way of righteousness, 
" he set his steps," and walked therein, without the 
least deviation, until he had finished his appointed 
course. Draw us, blessed Jesu, and we will run 
after thee, in the path of life ; let thy mercy pardon 
us, thy truth enlighten us, thy righteousness direct us, 
to follow thee, O Lamb of God, whithersoever thou 
goest, through poverty, affliction, persecution, and 
death itself ; that our portion may be for ever in thy 
kingdom of peace and love. 



210 Commentary on Psalm lxxxv in. 



PSALM LXXXVIII. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Good-Friday. 

ARGUMENT. 

This Psalm, as Mr. Mudge observes, may well be 
said to be composed, according to its title, TVO^hf 
to create dejection, to raise a pensive gloom or 
melancholy in the mind ; the whole subject of it 
being quite throughout heavy, and full of the most 
dismal complaints. The nature and degree of the 
sufferings related in it ; the strength of the expres- 
sions used to describe them ; the consent of an- 
cient expositors ; the appointment of the Psalm 
by the church to be read on Good Friday ; all 
these circumstances concur in directing an appli- 
cation of the whole to our blessed Lord. His 
unexampled sorrows, both in body and soul ; his 
desertion in the day of trouble ; his bitter passion, 
and approaching death ; with his frequent and fer- 
vent prayers for the accomplishment of the pro- 
mises, for the salvation of the church through him, 
and for the manifestation of God's glory ; these 
are the particulars treated of in this instructive and 
most affecting composition *. 

* Cum Psalmis xxii. et lxix. ad omnia convenit Psalmus 
Ixxxviii. quod argumento est, eum eodem modo a nobis esse 
explicandum. Continet igitur pariter orationem Christi ad 
Patrem e cruce fusam. Auctor hujus Cantici non alium in 
finem illi titulum dedit TOttfD, " erudientis," quam ut Ec- 
clesia posteriorum temporum ex eo disceret ultima haee 
Messiae fata. Vitringa, Observat. Sacr. lib. ii. cap. 9. 



Commentary on Psalm lxxxviii. 211 

1. O Lord God of my salvation, I have cried day 
and night before thee : 2. Let my prayer come before 
thee: incline thine ear unto my cry. 

We hear in these words the voice of our suffering 
Redeemer. As man, he addresseth himself to his 
Father, " the Lord God of his salvation," from 
whom he expected, according to the promises, a 
joyful and triumphant resurrection : he pleadeth the 
fervency and importunity of his prayers, offered up 
continually, " day and night," during the time of his 
humiliation and sufferings ; and he entreateth to be 
heard in these his supplications for his body mys- 
tical, as well as his body natural ; for himself, and 
for us all. 

3. For my soul is full of troubles ; and my life 
draweth nigh unto the grave. 

Is not this exactly parallel to what he said in the 
garden, " My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto 
death T " Full," indeed, " of troubles" was thy 
u soul," O blessed Jesus, in that dreadful hour, when, 
under the united weight of our sins and sorrows, thou 
wert sinking into the " grave," in order to raise us 
out of it. Let us judge of thy love by thy sufferings, 
and of both by the impossibility of our fully compre- 
hending either. 

4. I am counted with them that go down into the 
pit : I am as a man that hath no strength. 

Next to the troubles of Christ's soul, are men- 
tioned the disgrace and ignominy to which he sub- 
mitted. He who was the fountain of immortality, 
he from whom no one could take his life, who could 
in a moment have commanded twelve legions of an- 
gels to his aid, or have caused heaven and earth, at 
a word speaking, to fly away before him, he was 
** counted with them that go down into the pit he 
died, to all appearance, like the rest of mankind ; 
nay, he was forcibly put to death, as a malefactor ; 
and seemed, in the hands of his executioners, " as 
a man that had no strength," no power or might, to 



212 Commentary on Psalm lxxxvIii. 

help and to save himself. {< His strength went from 
him ; he became weak, and like another man." The 
people shook their heads at him, saying, "He saved 
others, himself he cannot save." 

5. Free among the dead, like the slain that lie in 
the grave, whom thou rememherest no more ; and 
they are cut off from thy hand. 

" Free among the dead ;" that is, set at liberty, 
or dismissed from the world, and separated from all 
communication with its affairs, as dead bodies are ; 
" like" other " corpses that lie in the grave, whom 
thou rememberest no more," i. e. as living objects of 
providence upon earth : in this sense, " they are cut 
off from God's hand," which held and supported 
them in life. And in no other sense can these ex- 
pressions be understood ; since to imagine that the 
Psalmist, who so often speaks in plain terms of the 
resurrection, should here, when personating Messiah, 
deny that doctrine, would be a conceit equally ab- 
surd, and impious. 

6. Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in dark' 
ness, in the deeps, 7. Thy wrath lieth hard upon 
me, and thou hast afflicted me with all thy waves. 

The sufferings of Jesus are represented by his 
being plunged into a dark and horrible abyss, with 
the indignation of God due to our sins, resting upon 
him, and all the waves of affliction rolling over him. 
The same image is used in Psalm lxix. and many 
other places. 

8. Thou hast put away mine acquaintance far 
from me: thou hast made me an abomination unto 
them: I am shut up, and 1 cannot come forth. 

At the apprehension of Christ, " All his disciples 
forsook him and fled :" Matt. xxvi. 56. Peter de- 
nied and abjured his Master, as if his acquaintance 
had been a disgrace, and an " abomination :" at the 
crucifixion, it is observed by St. Luke, that " all his 
acquaintance stood afar off, beholding these things ;" 
jsxiii. 49. beholding the innocent victim environed 



Commentary on Psalm lxxxviii. 213 

by his enemies, and at length " shut up" in the se- 
pulchre. The day must come, when each person, 
who reads this, shall be forsaken by the whole world ; 
when relations, friends, and acquaintance, shall re- 
tire, unable to afford him any help and assistance ; 
when he must die, and be confined in the prison of 
the grave, no more to " come forth," until that great 
Easter of the world, the general resurrection. In 
the solitary and awful hour of our departure hence, 
let us remember to think on the desertion, the death, 
the burial, and the resurrection of our Redeemer. 

9. Mine eye mourneth by reason of affliction : 
Lord, I have called daily upon tliee, I have stretch- 
ed out my hands unto thee. 

This verse contains a reiteration of the complaint 
and prayer made at the beginning of the Psalm. 
These are some of the " strong cryings with tears," 
which, during the course of his intercessions for us 
upon earth, the Son of God poured forth " in the 
days of his flesh." Heb. v. 7. 

10. Wilt thou show wonders to the dead? shall 
the dead rise and praise thee ? 11. Shall thy loving 
kindness be declared in the grave, or, thy faithful- 
ness in destruction ? 12. Shall thy wonders be known 
in the dark ? and thy righteousness in the land of 
forgetfulness ? 

It hath been sometimes thought, that these verses 
imply a denial, or at least a doubt, of the resurrection 
from the dead ; whereas they contain, in reality, the 
most powerful plea that Christ himself, in his prayers 
to the Father, could urge for it ; namely, that, other- 
wise, man would be deprived of his salvation, and 
God of the glory thence accruing. Wilt thou show 
wonders to the dead," while they continue in that 
state ; or if thou shouldst, will they be sensible of 
those wonders, and make thee due returns of thank- 
fulness ? " Shall the dead rise up" in the congrega- 
tion, i< and praise thee ?" Must they not live again 
to do that ? " Shall thy loving kindness" to the sons 



214 Commentary on Psalm lxxxviii. 

of Adam, in rae their Redeemer, u . be declared/' 
shall the Gospel be preached " in the grave V " or 
thy faithfulness," in accomplishing the promises con- 
cerning this loving kindness, shall it be manifested 
" in that destruction'' wrought by death upon the 
bodies of men ? " Shall thy wonders/' the wonders 
of light, and life, and salvation, " be known in the 
dark" tomb ? " and thy righteousness," which cha- 
racterizes all thy dispensations, shall it be remem- 
bered and proclaimed " in the land of" silence and 
" forgetfulness V A Christian, upon the bed of sick- 
ness, may undoubtedly plead with God, in this man- 
ner, for a longer continuance of life, to glorify him 
here upon earth. But every respite of that kind can 
be only temporary. All men, sooner or later, must 
die : and then they can never more experience the 
mercies, or sing the praises of God, unless they rise 
again. So that if the argument hold in one case, il 
certainly holdeth still stronger in the other. 

13. But unto thee have I cried, O Lord, and in 
the morning shall my prayer prevent me, 14. Lord 
why castest thou off my soul ? why hidest thou thy 
face from me ? 

Since therefore the wonders, the loving kindness, 
the faithfulness, and the righteousness of God,.cannot 
be manifested by man's redemption, if Messiah be 
left under the dominion of death, he redoubles his 
prayers for the promised deliverance ; and speaks 
of his redemption in the hour of sorrow, as in Fsal. 
xxii. 1. " My God, my God, why hast thou for- 
saken me?" &c. 

15. /am afflicted and ready to die from my youth 
up : while I suffer thy terrors, 1 am distracted; Heb. 
I am distressed, not knowing which way to turn my- 
self*, 16. Thy fierce wrath goeth over me, thy 

* Dominus ipse de se, Psal. lxxxviii. 16., " Fero terroris 
tuos ; animi linquor." Loquitur de extremis suis angoribus 
ct doloribus. Vitringa in Jesai. ii. 667. 



Commentary on Psalm lxxxviii. 215 

terrors have cut me off. 17, They came round 
about me daily like water ; they compassed me about 
together. 

We are not to imagine that the holy Jesus suffered 
for us only at Gethsemane, and on mount Calvary. 
His whole life was one continued passion ; a scene of 
labour and sorrow, of contradiction and persecution; 
" he was afflicted," as never man was, " from his 
youth up," from the hour of his birth, when, thrust 
out from the society of men, he made his bed 
in the stable at Bethlehem ; he was " ready to 
die," a victim destined for that death which, by 
anticipation, he tasted of through life ; he saw 
the flaming sword of God's " fierce wrath" waiting 
to " cut him off' from the land of the living ; the 
f 4 terrors" of the Almighty set themselves in array 
against him, threatening, like the mountainous waves 
of a tempestuous sea, to overwhelm his amazed soul. 
Let not the church be offended or despond, but 
rather let her rejoice in her sufferings, by which, 
through every period of her existence, from youth 
to age, she " filleth up that which is behind of the 
afflictions of Christ," who suffers and will be glori- 
fied in his people, as he hath already suffered and 
been glorified for them. See Col. i. 24. 

18. Lover and friend hast thou put far from me, 
and mine acquaintance into darkness. 

It is mentioned again, as a most affecting circum- 
stance of Christ's passion, that he was entirely for- 
saken, and left all alone, in that dreadful day. The 
bitter Gup was presented filled to the brim, and he 
drank it off to the dregs. No man could share in 
those sufferings by which all other men were to be 
redeemed. His " lovers and friends/' his disciples 
and acquaintance, " were put far from him ;" they 
all " forsook him, and fled," to hide themselves from 
the fury of the Jews, " in darkness," in dark, i. e. 
secret places. Thus it is written in the Psalms, 
and thus in the Gospels it is recorded to have hap- 



216 Commentary on Psalm LXXXIX. 

pened. Oftentimes, blessed Jesu, do we forsake 
thee ; but do not thou forsake us, or take thy holy 
Spirit from us. 

PSALM LXXXIX. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Christmas-day, 

ARGUMENT. 

This Psalm is appointed by the church to be read 
on Christmas-day. It celebrates, ver. 1 — 4. the 
mercies of God in Christ, promised to David ; 
5 — 13. the almighty power of Jehovah, manifested 
in his works and dispensations ; 14. his justice, 
mercy, and truth ; 15 — 18. the happiness and se- 
curity of his people ; 19 — 37. his covenant made 
with David, as the representative of Messiah, 
who should come of his seed ; 38 — 45. the church 
lamenteth her distressful state, at the time when 
this Psalm was penned*; 46—51, she prayeth 
for the accomplishment of the promise ; and, in 
the mean time, 52. blesseth Jehovah. 

1. / will sing of the mercies of the LoRD/or ever : 
with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness 
to all generations. 

The " mercies of Jehovah" have ever employed 
the voices of believers to celebrate them. These 
mercies were promises to the human race, in their 

* Sedecia cepto, domo David e solio deturbata, promissiones 
Dei irritas videri propheta queritur,necdum adesse Christum, 
Bossuet. — Dr. Kennicott imagines it to have been composed 
by Isaiah, as a solemn and public address to God, at the time 
when Rezin and Pekah were advancing against Jerusalem. 
2 



Commentary on Psalm lxxxix. 217 

great representative and surety, before the world be- 
gan; 2 Tim. i. 9. Tit. i. 2. they were prefigured by 
ancient dispensations ; and, in part, fulfilled, at the 
incarnation of Christ. The " faithfulness" of God, 
in so fulfilling them, is now u made known," by 
the holy services of the Christian church; " to all ge- 
nerations." 

2. For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for 
ever ; thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very 
heavens. 

Whatever be at any time the state of the church 
on earth, she knoweth that the foundation of God 
standeth sure ; that the sacred edifice, raised thereon, 
will be incorruptible and eternal as " heaven" itself, 
where only mercy and truth are to have their perfect 
work, in the everlasting felicity of the redeemed. 
Of this felicity, which is to be the consummation of 
God's promises, and our hopes, we behold some 
faint resemblance, as often as we view the stability, 
the beauty, and the glory of the visible material 
*' heavens." 

3. / have made a covenant with my chosen, I have 
sworn unto David my servant : 4. Thy seed will I 
establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all ge- 
nerations. 

The two former verses set forth a profession of 
faith in God's mercy : these two assign the ground of 
such faith; namely, the covenant which God is here 
introduced as declaring that he had made with David, 
and which he did make with him by the prophet Na- 
than : 2 Sam. vii. 12. &c. The covenant relates to 
David's" seed," and to the " establishment of his 
throne" in that seed ; literally, in Solomon for a 
time; spiritually, in Christ for ever: •* When thy 
days shall be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with 
thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which 
shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish 
his kingdom. He shall build an house for my name, 
and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for 



218 Commentary on Psalm lxxxix. 

ever. I will be his father, and he shall be my 
sou." These last words are cited by the apostle, 
Heb. i. 5. as spoken of Christ, to evince his su- 
periority over the angels. Yet that the whole pas- 
sage does, in the letter, relate to Solomon, can admit 
of no doubt, he being the " seed" and immediate 
successor of David and the person appointed to 
" build an house for God's name." Here then we 
have an incontestable proof, that the covenant with 
David had Messiah for its object; that Solomon 
was a figure of him; and that the Scripture hath 
sometimes a double sense *. It is moreover to be 
observed, that the covenants made with Abraham, 
David, &c all had their original and foundation in 
the covenant made with Messiah, who was the 
true Father of the faithful, the Beloved and Chosen 
of God ; the great Prophet, Priest, and King ; 
the only person qualified to be a Sponsor, and to 
engage in a covenant with the Father for mankind. 
His sufferings were the price of our redemption: 
and because he suffered in the flesh, as " the Son of 
David," therefore is he " established for ever, and 
his throne built up to all generations." Remarkable 
are the words of the angel to Mary: " The Lord 
God shall give unto him the throne of his father 
David; and he shall reign over the house of Jacob 
for ever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end." 
Luke i. 32. 

5. And the heavens shall praise thy wonders, O 
Lord; thy faithfulness also in the congregation of 
the saints: or, The heavens shall praise thy wonders^ 
O Lord ; and the saints thy faithfulness in the con* 
gregation. 

Did not " the heavens praise the wonders of 
Jehovah," when a choir of angels descended from 
above, to sing an anthem, at the birth of Christ? 

* " Disposui testaraentum percussi foedus cum electo 
meo : id est Davide et Christo. Bossuet, 



Commentary on Psalm lxxxix. 219 

And how must the celestial courts have resounded 
with the hallelujahs of those blessed spirits, when 
they again received their King, returning in triumph 
from the conquest of his enemies? Nor do " the 
saints" omit to celebrate God's te faithfulness in the 
congregation" upon earth, while" with angels and 
archangels, and all the company of heaven, they 
laud and magnify his glorious name, evermore prais- 
ing him, and saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of 
hosts, heaven and earth are full of thy glory. Glory 
be to thee, O Lord most high." 

6. For who in the heaven can be compared unto 
the Lord? who among the sons of the mighty can 
be likened unto the Lord? 7. God is greatly to be 
feared in the assembly of the saints ; and to be had 
in reverence of all them that are about him. 8. O 
Lord God of hosts, who is a strong Lord like unto 
thee? or to thy faithfulness round about thee 1 , or, 
and thy faithfulness is round about thee. 

These verses proclaim that right and title which 
Jehovah hath to the praises of all his creatures in 
" heaven and earth." No one of them, however 
excellent and glorious, however deified and adored by 
fond and foolish man, can enter the lists, and contest 
the superiority with its Maker. High over all is the 
throne of God: before him u angels" veil their faces, 
" saints" prostrate themselves with lowest reverence, 
and created nature trembles at his word ; his <( power" 
is almighty, and derived from none ; and with 
" truth" he is on all sides invested as with a gar- 
ment: the former enables him, the latter (if we may 
so express it) binds him, to perform those gracious 
promises, which mercy prompted him to make, con- 
cerning our eternal redemption. 

9. Thou rulest the raging of the sea : when the 
waves thereof arise, thou stillest them. 

The extent of the ocean, the multitude of its 
waves, and their fury when excited by a storm, ren- 
der it, in that state, the most tremendous object in 
l3 



220 Commentary on Psalm lxxxix. 

nature; nor doth any thing, which man beholds, 
give him so just an idea of human impotence, and 
of that divine power which can excite and calm so 
boisterous an element at pleasure. God himself 
therefore frequently appeals to this instance of his 
omnipotence, see Job xxxiii. 11. Jer. v. 22. an 
attribute of which our Lord showed himself to have 
been possessed, when, being with his diciples in the 
ship, he arose and rebuked a tempestuous wind and 
a raging sea, and there was instantly a calm. In 
all our troubles and temptations, be thou, blessed 
Jesu, with us, and then they shall never finally 
overwhelm us. 

10. Thou hast broken Rahab, i. e. Egypt, in 
pieces, as one that is slain : thou hast scattered thine 
enemies with thy strong arm. 

The destruction of Pharaoh and the Egyptians is 
here mentioned as another instance of God's mighty 
power. And it is probable, that the foreging verse 
was intended to allude more particularly to that 
miraculous exertion of God's sovereignty over the 
waters, the division of the Red Sea, which happened 
at the same time ; as these two events are generally 
spoken of together. Thus Isaiah: " Art thou not 
it that hath cut Rahab," i. e. Egypt, <f and wounded 
the dragon." i. e. Pharaoh ? " Art thou not it which 
hath dried the sea, the waters of the great deep, 
that hath made the depths of the sea a way for the 
ransomed to pass over?" li. 9. The same power 
which effected all this, hath since, in Christ Jesus, 
overcome the world, destroyed the works of the 
devil, and ransomed mankind from the depths of the 
grave. 

11. The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine: 
as for the world, and the fulness thereof, thou hast 

founded them, 12. The north and the south, thou 
hast created them : Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice 
in thy name. 

The " heavens," and all the glorious bodies there 



Commentary on Psalm LXXXIX. 221 

ranged in beautiful order; the " earth," with its 
rich furniture, and the unnumbered tribes of its in- 
habitants, through its whole extent, from " north to 
south," and from east to west; all these are so 
many evidences of that wisdom and power which at 
the beginning contrived and formed them; all, in 
their respective ways, declare the glory, and speak 
the praises of their great Creator; but chiefly the 
holy land, and the fruitful hills which adorned it. 
*' Tabor" in one part, and " Hermon" in another, 
formerly seemed, as it were to *' rejoice" and sing, 
for the abundant favours showered down upon them 
by the God of Israel, who hath since caused all 
nations no less to exult and triumph in his saving 
NAME. 

13. Thou hast a mighty arm: strong is thy hand, 
and high is thy right hand. 

The Psalmist, having produced and meditated on 
some eminent instances of divine power, draws this 
general conclusion from the premises. Towards the 
Christian church " the arm of Jehovah" hath been 
revealed in a still more extraordinary manner. She 
reflecteth on the wonders wrought by Jesus; a con- 
quest over more formidable enemies than Pharaoh 
and his Egyptians; a redemption from more cruel 
bondage; salvation from sin and death ; a new crea- 
tion, new heavens, and new earth, anew Jerusalem, 
and a spiritual Sion. With additional conviction may 
she therefore exclaim, " Thou hast a mighty arm; 
strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand!" 

14. Justice and judgment are the habitation, 
Heb. the establishment, of thy throne ; mercy and 
truth shall go before thy face. 

Although the power of God be infinite, yet is it 
never exerted, but under the direction of his other 
attributes. When he goeth, as a judge, to his tri- 
bunal, tf mercy and truth go before his face;" they 
are represented as preceding him, to give notice of 
his advent, and to prepare his way. " All the ways," 



222 Commentary on Psalm LXXXIX. 

or dispensations, ** of the Lord," as it is elsewhere? 
observed, " are mercy and truth;" Ps. xxv. 10. they 
are the substance of all his revelations, which either 
promise salvation, Or relate the performance of such 
promises. By these is man Warned and prepared for 
"judgment;" which is to be the last and finishing 
scene. And when the great Judge of all the earth 
shall from his throne pronounce the irreversible sen- 
tence, not a creature then present shall be able to 
accuse that sentence of injustice. After this model 
should the thrones of princes, and the tribunals of 
earthly magistrates, be constituted in 4 'justice and 
judgment/' adorned with " mercy and truth." 

15. Blessed is the people that know the joyful 
sound: they shall walk) O Lord in the light of thy 
countenance. 

Next to the praises of Jehovah, is declared the 
happiness of jthose who have him for their God; who 
" know the joyful sound, or sound of the trumpet." 
by which the festivals of the Jewish church were pro- 
claimed, and the people were called together to the 
offices of devotion; who enjoy the 4 * light" of truth, 
and through grace are enabled to " walk" therein. 
These blessings are now become our own : the evan- 
gelical trumpet hath sounded through the once Hea- 
then world ; the Sun of righteousness hath risen upon 
all nations. Let us attend to the " joyful sound 
let us " walk" in the glorious " light." 

16. In thy name shall Ihey rejoice all the day : and 
in thy righteousness shall they be exalted. 17. For 
thou art the glory of their strength: and in thy 
favour our horn shall be exalted. 18. For the 
Lord is our defence: and the Holy One of Israelis 
our King* 

It is the duty of Christians, as it was that of 
Israelites, to ascribe all their strength, their success, 
and their glory, whether in matters temporal or spi- 
ritual, to Jehovah alone. Having heard the sound, 
and experienced the illuminating and reviving in- 



Commentary on Psalm LXXXIX. 228 

fluences of the Gospel, in the name and in the salva- 
tion of God we rejoice all the day, and in his righ- 
teousness only we trust to be exalted to heaven : to 
him we attribute the glory of that strength, with 
which, in time of temptation, we may find ourselves 
happily endued ; and in his favour, or grace, our 
horn, or the efforts of our power, shall be exalted, 
and crowned with victory ; our defence in all dangers 
is from Jehovah, who was ever the shield of his 
ancient people; and the Holy One of Israel is our 
Redeemer, and our King. 

11). Then thou spakest in vision to thy holy one, 
and saidsty I have laid, or, placed, help upon, or, in, 
one that is mighty ; I have exalted one chosen out of 

e people. 

The covenant made with David was mentioned 
in general terms above, at verses 4, 5. But a more 
particular account is now given of God's dispensa- 
tions relative to the son of Jesse, and his posterity. 
We are presented with the substance of the revelation 
made upon this subject, " in vision, 5 ' to one of the 
prophets, perhaps Samuel, or Nathan, here styled 
an 4f holy one," or religious person, one favoured 
and accepted by God, who is introduced as mani- 
festing to this his prophet the divine counsels con- 
cerning David: *■■ I have placed help upon, or in 
one, who shall become an eminent and mighty Sa- 
viour of Israel; from among all the people I have 
chosen, and determined to exalt him, for that pur- 
pose, to the throne." Thus was Messiah foretold, 
in prophetical visions and revelations, as the person 
designed to be the mighty Redeemer of his church ; 
thus, in the fulness of time, was he chosen from 
among all the children of men, and exalted, through 
sufferings, to an eternal throne. 

20. I have found David my servant; with my 
holy oil have I anointed him : 21. With whom my 
hand shall be established; mine arm also shall 
strengthen him. 

l4 



224 Commentary on Psalm LXXXIX. 

David was the servant of God ; he was, by the 
prophet Samuel, anointed with oil ; he was strength- 
ened and established in his kingdom, by the hand 
and arm of Jehovah. But never let Christians fail, 
in this eminently figurative character, to contemplate 
that true david (for so he is called, Ezek. xxxiv. 
23. xxxvii. 25.) the beloved Son of God; " the 
servant and elect of Jehovah, in whom his soul 
delighted, and on whom he put his Spirit;" Isa. xlii. 
1. whom he " anointed with his holy oil, with the oil 
of gladness, with the Holy Ghost and with power 
Ps. xlv. 7. Acts x. 38. whom he strengthened, and 
established in his spiritual kingdom, with his hand 
and arm, and the might of his omnipotence. 

22. The enemy shall not exact upon, or, deceive, 
him: nor the son of wickedness afflict, or, subdue, 
him, 23. And 1 will beat down his foes before his 
face, and plague them that hate him. 24. But my 
faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him : and in 
my name shall his horn be exalted. 

These promises were fulfilled to David, when God 
delivered him out of the hand of Saul, and of all his 
other adversaries. See 2 Sam. xxii. 1. And in what 
a full, perfect, and divine sense, were they verified to 
Christ! That subtle enemy, " which deceiveth the 
whole world," was not able to deceive him; neither 
the sons nor the father of wickedness could over- 
throw and subdue him : all opposition fell before him, 
and they who haled him suffered unparalleled deso- 
lation; the promised faithfulness and mercy of Jeho- 
vah were ever with him, and his kingdom was exalted 
with glory and honour. 

25. 1 will set his hand also in the sea, and his right 
hand in the rivers. 

The dominions of David and his son Solomon 
extended from the Mediterranean " sea'* to the 
'■* rivers" Euphrates, &c. : the empire of Christ is 
universal over Jews and Gentiles, throughout all the 
earth. See Ps. lxxii. 8. &c. 



Commentary on Psalm lxxxix. 225 

26. He shall cry unto me, Thou art my father, ??iy 
God, and the rock of my salvation. 27. Also I wilt 
make him my first-born, higher than the kings of 
the earth. 

All this, if in some respects true of David, is 
much more emphatically so of our Lord Jesus Christ. 
" Son of God" is one of his distinguished titles ; of 
** the Father" he continually spoke, and to the 
Father he addressed his prayers and cries, in the 
days of his flesh ; as man he was raised and exalted 
by the power and glory of the Divinity ; he was "the 
first born of every creature, the first begotten from 
the dead, and the Prince of the kings of the earth." 
Col. i. 15. Rev. i. 5. Make us, blessed Lord, the 
sons of God, and teach us to cry, Abba, Father ; 
give us victory and dominion over sin and death, 
that we may live and reign with thee for ever. 

28. My mercy will I keep fur, or, to, him for 
evermore, and my covenant shall standfast icith him. 
29. Bis seed also will I make to endure for ever, and 
his throne as the days of heaven. 

God kept his mercy and covenant with David, by 
preserving the line of his posterity, until his great 
antitype, Messiah, the subject of all the promises, 
came, by whom the kingdom was established for ever, 
being changed into a spiritual one, which is to be 
transferred from earth to heaven, and rendered coeval 
with those eternal mansions of the blessed. 

30. If his children forsake my law, and walk not 
in my judgments ; 31. If they break, or, profane, my 
statutes, and keep not my commandments ; 32. Then 
will I visit their transgression with the rod, and 
their iniquity with stripes. 33. Nevertheless, my 
loving kindness will 1 not utterly take from him, nor 
suffer my faithfulness to fail. 34. My covenant 
will Inot break, nor alter the thing that is gone out 
of my lips. 

The posterity of David were to enjoy God's 
favour, or be deprived of it, as they proved obedient 
L 5 



226 Commentary on Psalm LXXX1X. 

or disobedient to his "law;" as they executed of 
perverted its civil " judgments ;" as they observed 
or neglected its ceremonial " statutes," or religious 
institutions ; as they kept or broke its M command- 
ments,' or moral precepts. When they became 
rebellious, idolatrous, and profligate, the rod was 
lifted up, and due chastisement inflicted, sometimes 
by the immediate hand of Heaven, sometimes by the 
instrumentality of their heathen adversaries ; famine 
and pestilence, war and captivity, were at different 
times employed to reclaim backsliding Israel. But 
still, the " covenant" of God in Christ stood sure ; 
the Jewish nation was preserved, through all changes 
and revolutions, " until the Seed came to whom the 
promise was made ;" nor was Jerusalem destroyed, 
before the new and spiritual kingdom of Messiah 
was set up in the earth. Christian communities, and 
the individuals that compose them, are in like man- 
ner corrected and punished for their offences. " Ne- 
vertheless, God's loving kindness will he not utterly 
take from us, nor suffer his faithfulness to fail. His 
covenant will he not break, nor alter the thing that 
is gone out of his lips." So — " I am with you 
always," says the Redeemer, even to the end of 
the world ; and the gates of hell shall not prevail 
against my church :" Matt, xxviii. 20. xvi. 18. Nor 
shall the world be destroyed, until Christ come 
again, and his glorious kingdom be ready to appear. 

35. Once I have sworn by my holiness, that I will 
not lie unto David. 36. His seed shall endure for 
ever y and his throne as the sun before me. 37. It 
shall be established jor ever as the moon f and as a 
faithful witness in heaven. 

The promise, covenant, and oath of God, which 
he declareth shall never fail, are here repeated. They 
relate to Christ, that " Seed," or " Son of David," 
who " endureth for ever." His throne is resplendent 
as the "sun," and shall continue, after that lumi- 
nary is extinguished : his church is permanent as the 



Commentary on Psalm lxxxix. 227 

moon," though, like her, subject to vicissitudes, 
and liable, for a time, to be obscured by eclipses, 
during her present state upon earth. And while the 
rainbow shall be seen in the clouds, man has 14 a 
faithful witness in heaven" of the immutable -troth, 
of God's word, and the infallible accomplishment of 
what he promises. ** Look upon the rainbow," saith 
the wise son of Sirach, " and praise him who made 
it : very beautiful it is in the brightness thereof : 
itcompasseth the heaven about with a glorious circle* 
and the hands of the most High have bended it:" 
Ecclus. xliii. 11. But let us not forget likewise, 
when we look upon the rainbow, to praise him who 
made it to be a sign and sacred symbol of mercy ; in 
which capacity we behold it, to our great and end- 
less comfort, compassing the throne of Christ with 
a gracious, as well as glorious, circle. " There was 
a rainbow round about the throne." Rev. iv. 3. 
Ezek. i. 28. 

38. But thou hast cast off and abhorred, thou hast 
been wroth with thine anointed. 39. Thou hast made 
void the covenant of thy servant ; thou hast prof aned 
his crown, by casting it to the ground. 

In the former part of our Psalm, we have seen 
what the divine promises were, which had been made 
to the house of David. By the latter part, upon 
which we are entering, it appears, that the Psalm- 
was written at a time, when the church of Israel was 
in such a manner oppressed and reduced by her 
enemies that her members began almost to despair of 
those promises receiving their accomplishment. God 
seemed to have " cast off" and " abhorred" his 
" anointed" and " servant," that is, David, or rather 
the prince of his family who was upon the throne 
when this captivity and desolation happened; the 
" covenant" seemed to be overturned and " made 
void, M when the " crown" of Israel was defiled in 
the dust. 

40. Thou hast broken down all his hedges, thou 
L 6 



228 Commentary on Psalm Lxxxix. 

hast brought his strong holds to ruin, 41. All that 
pass by the way spoil him : he is a reproach to his 
neighbours, 42. Thou hast set up the right hand 
of his adversaries : thou hast made all his enemies to 
rejoice, 43. Thou hast also turned the edge of his 
sword, and hast not made him to stand in the battle, 
44. Thou hast made his glory to cease, and cast his 
throne down to the ground. 45. The days of his 
youth hast thou shortened ; thou hast covered him 
with shame. 

The manifold calamities of Sion are in these verses 
enumerated, — the demolition of fences and fortifica- 
tions ; the cruel ravages consequent thereupon ; the 
shame of defeats ; the reproaches and insults of vic- 
torious adversaries; the dishonours of violent and 
untimely death. In days like these here described, 
when the church and the king are permitted to fall 
into the hands of those who hate them, and to drink 
thus deeply of the cup of affliction, distrust and de- 
spondency are apt to seize upon the minds of men. 
Nay, when the faithful few beheld the true " Son of 
David," and " Anointed" of Jehovah, in the day 
of his sufferings, when they saw him, without help 
or defence, u spoiled and reproached by his neigh- 
bours ;" when they viewed " the right hand of his 
adversaries set up," and all his " enemies rejoicing" 
over him ; his " glory made to cease," and bis 
*' crown profaned in the dust , the days of his youth 
shortened," and himself delivered over to a " shame- 
ful" as well as painful death ; they then began to 
think the covenant made void," and the promises 
at an end. " We trusted," said they, " that it had 
been he who should have redeemed Israel !" Luke 
x«xiv. 21. And although Christ be long since risen 
from the dead, and ascended into heaven, yet the 
prevalence of iniquity, and the oppression of the 
church, have been, and in the last days will be such, 
as to put the faith and hope of his servants to a sore 



Commentary on Psalm lxxxiX. 229 

trial, while they wait for his second, as the ancient 
Jews did for his first advent. 

46. How long. Lord I Wilt thou hide thyself for 
ever ? shall thy wrath burn like fire ? 47. Remem- 
ber how short my time is : wherefore hast thou made 
all men in vain? Or, as Ains worth translates the 
verse, Remember how transitory I am, unto what 
vanity thou hast created all the sons of Adam. 
48. What man is he that liveth, and shall not see 
death? shall he deliver his soul, or, animal frame, 
from the hand of the grave ? 49. Lord, where are 
thy former loving kindnesses, which thou swarest 
unto David in thy truth ? 

This is the humble and dutiful expostulation of 
the church with God in all her distresses upon the 
earth. By asking, "how long Lord? wilt thou 
be angry for ever V she tacitly pleadeth his pro- 
mise not to be so : she urgeth the shortness of man's 
life here below, the universality of the fatal sentence, 
the impossibility of avoiding death, and, if nothing 
farther was to happen, the frustration of the divine 
counsels concerning man. From thence she entreat- 
eth God to remember the " loving kindnesses" once 
promised by him with an oath to David, as related 
in the former part of the Psalm. These " loving 
kindnesses" are called, in Isaiah, lv. 3. " the sure 
mercies of David which " sure mercies of David" 
are affirmed by St. Paul, Acts xiii. 34. to have 
been then confirmed on Israel, when, in the per- 
son of Jesus, God raised our nature from the 
grave. To a resurrection, therefore, believers have 
ever aspired ; thither have they directed their wishes, 
and on that event have they fixed their hopes, as the 
end of temporal sorrows, and the beginning of eter- 
nal joys. 

50. Remember, Lord, the reproach of thy ser- 
vants ; how I do bear in my bosom the reproach of 
all the mighty people ; 51. Wherewith thine enemies 



230 Commentary on Psalm LXXXIX. 

have reproached, O Lord ; wherewith they have 
reproached the footsteps of thine anointed. 

The last argument urged by the church, in her 
expostulation with God for a speedy redemption* 
is, the continual reproach to which she was subject, 
on account of the promise being delayed. The 
** mighty people," or Heathen nations, who held her 
in captivity, and were witnesses of her wretched and 
forlorn estate, ridiculed her pretensions to perpetuity 
of empire in the house of David ; they blasphemed 
the God, who was said to have made such promises ; 
and " reproached the footsteps,'' or mocked at the 
lardy advent of his Messiah*, who was to establish 
in Israel his everlasting throne. All these cruel 
taunts and insults she was obliged to " bear in her 
bosom," and there to suppress them in silence, 
having nothing to answer in the day of her calamity 
and seeming destitution. St. Peter gives us a like 
account of the state of the Christian church in the 
latter days; he exhorts us to be " mindful of the 
words which were spoken before by the holy pro- 
phets, and of the commandments of the apostles of 
the Lord and Saviour, because there shall come in 
the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, 
and saving, Where is the promise of his coming V* 
2 Pet.'iii. 4. 

52. Blessed be the Lord for evermore. Amen 
and Amen. 

But whatever be at any time our distress, either 
as a community or as individuals, still are we to 
believe, still to hope, still to bless and praise Jehovah, 
whose word is true, whose works are faithful, whose 
chastisements are mercies, and all whose promises 
are, in Christ Jesus, yea, and amen for evermore. 

* " Exprobfaverunt vestigia Christi tui;" tarditatem vesti* 
giorum Christi tui. Chald. — Irridebant nos quod non adve* 
liiret expectatus ille Liberator, sivc Cyrus, sivje potius 
Christus de semiue Davidis, regno ejus instaurando, et in 
aeternum firmando. Bossuet. 



Commentary on Psalm Xd. 281 



PSALM XC. 

One of the Psalms appointed for the 
Burial Service. 
ARGUMENT. 

This Psalm is called, iii its title, *' A Prayer of 
Moses, the man of God." By him it is imagined 
to have been composed when God shortened the 
days of the murmuring Israelites in the wilder^ 
hess. See Numb. xiv. It is, however, a Psalm 
of general use, and is made, by the church, a part 
of her funeral service. It containeth, 1, 2. an 
address to the eternal and unchangeable God, the 
Saviour and Preserver of his people ; 3 — 10. a 
most affecting description of man's mortal and 
transitory state on earth since the fall ; 11. a 
complaint that few meditate in such a manner 
upon death, as to prepare themselves for it ; 12. 
a prayer for grace so to do ; 13 — 17. and for the 
mercies of redemption. 

1. Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all 
generations. 2. Before the mountains were brought 
forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth arid the 
world, even from everlasting to everlasting thou art 
God. 

The Psalmist, about to describe man's fleeting and 
transitory state, first directs us to contemplate the 
unchangeable nature and attributes of God, who hath 
always been a " dwelling place," or place of defence 
and refuge, affording protection and comfort to 
his people in the world, as he promised to be before 
the world began, and will, in a more glorious man- 
ner, continue to be after its dissolution. See, for a 
parallel, Ps. cii. 25, &c. with St. Paul's application, 
Heb. i. 10* 



232 Commentary on Psalm xc. 

3. Thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest 
Return, ye children of men. 

Death was the penalty inflicted on man for sin. 
The latter part of the verse alludes to the fatal sen- 
tence, Gen. iii. 19. " Dust thou art, and unto dust 
shalt thou return." How apt are we to forget both 
our original and our end ! 

4. For a thousand years in thy sight are but as 
yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the 
night. 

The connexion between the verse preceding* and 
the verse now before us, seems to be this. God sen- 
tenced man to death. It is true, the execution of 
the sentence was at first deferred, and the term of 
human life suffered to extend to near a thousand 
years. But what was even that, what is any period 
of time, or time itself, if compared with the duration 
of the Eternal ? All time is equal when it is past ; a 
thousand years, when gone, are forgotten as yester- 
day ; and the longest life of man, to a person who 
looks back upon it, may appear only as three hours, 
or one quarter of the night. 

5. Thou carriest them away as with a flood : they 
are as a sleep : in the morning they are like grass 
which groweth up ; or, as grass that changeth. 6. 
In the morning it flourisheth and groweth up ; in 
the evening it is cut down, and withereth. 

The shortness of life and the suddenness of our 
departure hence, are illustrated by three similitudes. 
The first is that of a " flood," or torrent pouring un- 
expectedly and impetuously from the mountains 
and sweeping all before it in an instant. The second 
is that of " sleep," from which when a man awaketh 
he thinketh the time passed in it to have been no- 
thing. In the third similitude, man is compared to 
the " grass" of the field. In the morning of youth 
fair and beautiful, he groweth up and flourisheth ; 
in the evening of old age (and how often before that 
evening !) he is cut down by the stroke of death ; all 



Commentary on Psalm xc. 233 

his juices, to the circulation of which he stood in- 
debted for life, health, and strength, are dried up ; 
he withereth, and turneth again to his earth. 
" Surely all flesh is grass, and all the godliness 
thereof is as the flower of the field !" Isa. xl. 6. 
Of this truth, the word of God, the voice of nature, 
and daily experience, join to assure us ; yet who 
ordereth his life and conversation as if he believed 
it? 

7. For we are consumed by thine anger, and by 
thy wrath are we troubled. 8. Thou hast set our 
iniquities before thee : our secret sins in the light of 
thy countenance. 

The generations of men are troubled and con- 
sumed by divers diseases, and sundry kinds of death, 
through the displeasure of God ; his displeasure is 
occasioned by their sins, all of which he seeth and 
punisheth. If Moses wrote this Psalm, the provo- 
cations and chastisements of Israel are here alluded 
to. But the case of the Israelites in the wilderness, 
is the case of Christians in the world ; and the same 
thing is. true both in them and in us. 

9. For all our days are passed away in thy wrath ; 
we spend our years as a tale that is told. 

Life is compared to a " tale" that is told and 
forgotten ; to a *' word" which is but air, or breath, 
and vanisheth into nothing, as soon as spoken ; or 
perhaps, as the original generally signifies, to a 
" meditation, a thought," which is of a nature still 
more fleeting and transient. 

10. The days of our years are threescore years 
and ten, and if by reason of strength, they he four- 
score years, yet is their strength labour and sorrow: 
for it is soon cut off, and we fly away. 

This again might be primarily spoken by Moses, 
concerning Israel. The generation of those who 
came out of Egypt, from twenty years old and up- 
wards, fell within the space of forty years, in the 
wilderness ; Numb. xiv. 29. ; and they who lived 



2&4 Commentary on Psalm Xc. 

longest experienced only labour and sorrow, until 
they were cut off, like grass, and, by the breath of 
God's displeasure, blown away from the face of the 
earth. Like the Israelites, we have been brought 
out of Egypt, and sojourn in the wilderness ; like 
them we murmur, and offend God our Saviour; like 
them we fall and perish. To the age of seventy 
years, few of us can hope to attain ; labour and sor- 
row are our portion in the world ; we are mowed 
down, as this year's grass of the field ; we fly away, 
and are no more seen in the land of the living. 

11. Who knoweth the power of ihine anger ? 
Even according to thy fear, so is thy wrath. 

Houbigant renders the verse thus : " Quis novit 
vim irae tuae, et, prout terribiiis es, furorem tuum?" 
— " Who knoweth," or considereth, '« the power of 
thine anger ; and thy wrath, in proportion as thou 
art terrible?" that is, in other words, Notwithstand- 
ing all the manifestations of God's indignation 
against sin, which introduced death and every other 
calamity among men, who is there that knoweth? 
who that duly considereth and layeth to heart the 
almighty power of that indignation ; who that is 
induced, by beholding the mortality of his neigh- 
bours, to prepare himself for his own departure 
hence? Such holy consideration is the gift of God, 
from whom the Psalmist, in the next verse, di- 
recteth us to request it. 

12. So teach us to number our days, that ice may 
apply our hearts unto wisdom. 

He who " numbereth his days," or taketh a right 
account of the shortness of this present life, com- 
pared with the unnumbered ages of that eternity 
which is future, will soon become a proficient in the 
school of true wisdom. He will learn to give the 
preference where it is due ; to do good, and suffer 
evilupon earth, expecting the reward of both in 
heaven. Make us wise, blessed Lord, but wise 
unto salvation. 

13. Return, Lord, how long ? and let it repent 



Commentary on Psalm xc. 235 

thee concerning, or, be propitiated towards, thy 
servant St 

During the reign of death over poor mankind, 
God is represented as absent ; he is therefore by the 
faithful entreated to " return," and to satisfy their 
longing desires after salvation ; to hasten the day 
when Messiah should make a " propitiation" for sin, 
when he should redeem his servants from death, and 
ransom them from the power of the grave. The 
Christian, Who knoweth that his Lord is risen indeed, 
looks forward to the resurrection of the just, when 
death shall be finally swallowed up in victory. 

14. O satisfy us early, or, in the morning, with 
thy mercy ; that we may rejoice and be glad all our 
days. 15. Make us glad according to the days 
wherein thou hast afflicted us, and the years wherein 
we have seen evil. 

The church prayeth for the dawning of that glo- 
rious morning, when every cloud shall vanish at the 
rising of the Sun of righteousness, and night and 
darkness shall be no more. Then only shall we be 
" satisfied, or saturated, with the mercy" of Jehovah; 
then only shall we " rejoice and be glad all our 
days." The time of our pilgrimage upon earth is^a 
time of sorrow ; we grieve for our departed friends, 
and our surviving friends must soon grieve for us ; 
these are " the days wherein God afflicted us, these 
the years wherein we see evil ;" but he will hereafter 
" make us glad according to them ;" in proportion 
to our sufferings, if rightly we bear those sufferings, 
will be our reward ; nay, " these light afflictions, 
which are but for a moment, work for us a far more 
exceeding and eternal weight of glory." Then shall 
our joy be increased, and receive an additional 
relish from the remembrance of our former sorrow ; 
then shall we bless the days and the years which 
exercised our faith, and perfected our patience; 
and then shall we bless God, who chastised us for a 
season, that he might save us for ever. 



236 Commentary on Psalm XCI. 

16. Let thy work appear unto thy servants, and 
thy glory unto their children* 17. And let the beauty 
of the Lord our God be upon us ; and establish thou 
the work of our hands upon us, yea, the work of our 
hands establish thou it. 

The redemption of man is that " work" of God 
whereby his " glory" is manifested to all genera- 
tions, and which all generations do therefore long to 
behold accomplished. For this purpose the faithful 
beseech God to let his " beauty," his splendour, the 
light of bis countenance, his grace and favour, be 
upon them : to " establish the work of their hands," 
to bless, prosper, and perfect them in their Christian 
course and warfare ; until, through him, they shall 
be enabled to subdue sin, and triumph over death. 



PSALM XCI. 

ARGUMENT. 

The Prophet, 1 — 10. declared the security of the 
righteous man under the care and protection of 
Heaven, in times of danger, when 11, 12. a guard 
of angels is set about him. 13. His final victory 
over the enemies of his salvation is foretold ; and 
14 — 16. God himself is introduced, promising him 
deliverance, exaltation, glory, and immortality. 
The Psalm is addressed, primarily, to Messiah. 
That it related to him, Jews and Christians are 
agreed ; and the devil, Matt. iv. 6. cited two 
verses from it, as universally known and allowed 
to have been spoken of him. 

1. He that dwelleth in the secret place of the 
Most High, shall abide under the shadow of the Al- 



Commentary on Psalm xci. 237 

mighty. 2. 1 will say of the Lord, He is my refuge 
and my fortress : my God ; in him will I trust. 8. 
Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the 
fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. 

In these verses, as they now stand, there is much 
obscurity and confusion. Bishop Lowth, in his 
xxvith Lecture, seemeth to have given their true 
construction : "He who dwelleth in the secret place 
of the Most High ; who abideth under the shadow 
of the Almighty ; who saith of the Lord, He is my 
refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I will 
trust — leaving the sentence thus imperfect the 
Psalmist maketh a beautiful apostrophe to that per- 
son whom he has been describing — " Surely he shall 
deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from 
the noisome pestilence." The description is emi- 
minently applicable to the man Christ Jesus # . He 
is represented as dwelling, like the ark in the Holy 
of holies, under the immediate " shadow" and pro- 
tection of the Almighty, who was his " refuge and 
fortress" against the open attacks of his enemies ; 
his preserver from the " snares" of the devil, and 
from the universal contagion of sin, that spiritual 
" pestilence." In all dangers, whether spiritual or 
corporeal, the members of Christ's mystical body 
may reflect with comfort, that they are under the 
same Almighty Protector. 

4. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under 
his wings shalt thou trust ; his truth shall be thy 
shield and buckler. 

The security afforded by a superintending Provi- 
dence, to those who trust therein, is here, with the 
utmost beauty and elegance, compared to that shel- 
ter, which the young of birds are always sure to find 
under the " wings" of their dam, when fear causeth 

* Ode Davidica insignis xci. agit directe et primo loco de 
tegmine et defensione quam Deus Christo Jesu Doctori et 
apostolis ipsius praestaret. Yitringa, Comment, in Jesai. 
ii. 565. 



238 Commentary on Psalm xci. 

them to fly thither for refuge : see Deut. xxxii. 11. 
Matt, xxiii. 37. The " truth" of God's word, 
wherein he promiseth to be our defence, is, to a 
believer, his " shield and buckler," in the day of 
battle and war. 

5. Thou shalt not be afraid for tJie terror by 
night ; nor for the arrow thalflieth by day : 6 Nor 
for the pestilence that walketh in darkness : nor for 
the destruction that wasteth at noon-day. 

How much man standeth in need of the above- 
mentioned protection of Heaven, appeareth from a 
survey of the dangers to which he is continually 
exposed. Various are the terrors of the night: 
manifold the perils of the day; from diseases whose 
infection maketh its progress unobserved ; from 
assaults, casualties, and accidents which can neither 
be foreseen, nor guarded against. The soul hath 
likewise her enemies, ready to attack and surprise 
her at all hours. Avarice and ambition are abroad 
watching for her in the day ; while concupiscence, 
like a pestilence, " walketh in darkness." In adver- 
sity she is disturbed by terrors ; in prosperity, still 
more endangered by pleasures. But Jesus Christ 
has overcome the world, to prevent us from being 
overcome by it. 

7. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten 
thousand at thy right hand : but it shalt not come 
nigh thee. 

This promise has oftentimes, in a wonderful man- 
ner, been verified to those faithful servants of God, 
whom the pestilence itself hath not deterred from 
doing the duties of their station. The bishop and 
some of the intendants of Marseilles, who continued 
to perform their respective offices, during the whole 
time of the plague there in 1720, are signal and 
well-known instances. Sin is a pestilence, the con- 
tagion of which no son of Adam ever escaped but 
the blessed Jesus. He stood alone untouched by 
its venom; thousands and ten thousands, all the 



Commentary on Psalm xci. 239 



myriads of mankind, fell around him ; " but it did 
not come nigh Him." Heal us of this our distemper, 
O thou Physician of souls, and let it not prove our 
everlasting destruction ; " stand," like thy repre- 
sentative of old, " between the dead and the living, 
and let the plague be stayed :" Numb. xvi. 47, 48. 

8. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see 
the reward of the wicked. 

The meaning is, that the righteous person all 
along spoken of, himself secure from the judgments 
of God, should in safety behold the destruction 
wrought by them upon impenitent and incorrigible 
sinners, This will be the case with the church, as 
well as her glorious Head, at the last day. 

9. Because thou hast made the Lord, which is 
my refuge, even the Most High, thy habitation ; 
10. There shall no evil befal thee, neither shall any 
plague come nigh thy dwelling. 

The sentiment in these verses is evidently the 
same with that in verses 5, 6, namely, that God 
preserveth such as trust in him, after the pattern of 
the holy Jesus, from those evils, and from that per- 
dition, which are reserved for the ungodly. Dr. 
Durell translates the 9th verse, in the way of apos- 
trophe, literally thus — " Surely, thou, O Lord, art 
my refuge ; O Most High, thou hast fixed thine 
habitation ; i. e. in Sion, to be the protector of his 
servant. 

11. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, 
to keep thee in all thy ways. 12. They shall bear 
thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against 
a stone. 

This passage was cited by the devil, who tempted 
our Lord to cast himself from a pinnacle of the 
temple, upon presumption of the promise here made, 
that angels should guard and support him in all dan- 
gers. But Christ, in his answer, at once detecteth 
and exposeth the sophistry of the grand deceiver, 
by showing, that the promise belonged only to thos© 



240 Commentary on Psalm xci. 

who fell unavoidably into clanger, in the course of 
duty ; such might hope for the help and protection 
of Heaven ; but that he who should wantonly and 
absurdly throw himself into peril, merely to try 
whether Providence would bring him out of it, must 
expect to perish for his pains. " Jesus saith unto 
him, It is written again, Thou shalt not TEMPT the 
Lord thy God/' Matt. iv. 7. 

13. Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder ; 
the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample 
under thy feet. 

The fury and the venom of our spiritual enemies 
are often in Scripture pourlrayed by the natural 
qualities of " lions and serpents." Messiah's com- 
plete victory over those enemies seemeth here to be 
predicted. Through grace he maketh us more than 
conquerors in our conflicts with the same adversaries. 
" The God of peace," saith St. Paul, " shall bruise 
Satan under your feet shortly :" Rom. xvi. 20. 
And it is observable that, when the seventy disciples 
return to Christ with joy, saying, "Lord, even the 
devils are subject unto us through thy name ;" he 
answers in the metaphorical language of our Psalm : 
" Behold, I give unto you power to tread on scor- 
pions and serpents, and over all the power of the 
enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. 
Notwithstanding, in this rejoice not that the spirits 
are subject unto you," &c. Luke x. 17. Give us, 
O Lord, courage to resist the " lion's" rage, and 
wisdom to elude the wiles of the " serpent." 

14. Because he hath set his love upon me, there- 
fore will I deliver him ; I will set him on high, be- 
cause he hath known my name. 15. He shall call 
upon me, and I will answer him ; I will be with him 
in trouble, I will deliver him, and honour, ox glorify, 
him. 16. With long life will I satisfy him, and 
shew him my salvation. 

In the former part of our Psalm, the Prophet had 
spoken in his own person ; here God himself is 



Commentary on Psalm xcv. 241 



plainly introduced as the speaker. And, O how 
sweet, how delightful and comfortable, are his words, 
addressed eminently to his beloved Son Messiah ; 
and in him to all of us, his adopted children, and the 
heirs of eternal life ; to all who love God, and have 
" known his name !" To such are promised, an an- 
swer to their prayers ; the presence of their heavenly 
Father with them ; in the day of trouble, protection, 
and deliverance ; salvation, and honour, and glory, 
and immortality. All these promises have already 
been made good to our gracious Head and Represen- 
tative. His prayers have been heard ; his sufferings 
are over: he is risen and ascended; and behold, 
he liveth and reigneth for evermore. Swift fly the 
intermediate years, and rise that long-expected 
morning, when He who is gone " to prepare a place 
for us, shall come again, and take us to himself, that 
where he is we may be also !" 



PSALM XCV. 
To he used regularly at Morning Prayer. 

ARGUMENT. 

This Psalm hath been long used in the Christian 
church, as a proper introduction to her holy ser- 
vices. It containeth 1, 2. an exhortation to praise 
Jehovah, 3. for his greatness, 4, 5. and for his 
works of creation ; 6. men are invited to worship 
him as their Maker, and 7, as their Preserver ; 
8 — 11. they are warned against tempting and 
provoking him, by the example of the Israelites 
in the wilderness. The author of the Epistle to 
the Hebrews hath taught us to consider the Psalm 
as an address to believers under the Gospel. 
M 



242 Commentary on Psalm xcv. 

I* O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us 
make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. 

In this first verse, Christians now exhort and stir 
up each other, as the Jews did of old, to employ 
their voices in honour of Jehovah, to celebrate " the 
rock of their salvation." Jesus, by redeeming us 
from our enemies, hath opened our lips, and our 
mouths ought, therefore, to shew forth his praise. 
He is the Rock of ages, in which is opened a foun- 
tain for sin and uncleanness; the Rock which attends 
the church in the wilderness, pouring forth the water 
of life for her use and comfort ; the Rock which is 
our fortress against every enemy, shadowing and 
refreshing a weary land. " O come then, let us sing 
unto this our Lord ; let us make a joyful noise unto 
this rock of our salvation." 

2. Let us come before his presence with thanks- 
giving, and make a joyful noise unto him with 
Psalms. 

The " presence" of Jehovah dwelt formerly be- 
tween the cherubim, in a tabernacle, or temple, made 
with hands, whither the Israelites were to resort, 
until God became manifest in the flesh. After that 
time, the divine presence left the synagogue, and 
removed into the Christian church ; by her we are 
now invited to " come before that presence with 
thanksgiving," and, while we " make a joyful noise/' 
by chanting these divine " Psalms," to imitate, in 
some measure, the heavenly choirs, who rest not, 
from their blessed employment of praising God, 
st day or night." Rev. iv. 8. 

3. For the Lord is a great God, and a great 
King above all gods. 

It is not without reason, that we are exhorted to 
give thanks and praise unto our God and King; for 
" he is worthy to receive glory and blessing :" Rev. 
v. 12. He is a God above all that are called by that 
name ; above those deities, which were once wor- 
shipped by the ancient heathen; above the world, 



Commentary on Psahn xcv. 243 

which still continues to be an object of adoration 
among infatuated mortals. His throne is over all, 
and power and dominion are his. 

4. In his hand are the deep places of the earth ; 
the strength of the hills is his also. 5. The sea is his, 
and he made it; and his hands formed the dry 
land. 

The treasures, which lie hid in the " deep places" 
of the earth beneath ; the majestic pride and 
" strength of the hills," which tower above, and lift 
up their heads to heaven ; the unnumbered waves of 
the great and wide " sea," which roll in perpetual mo- 
tion round the world ; the rich and variegated pro- 
duce of the " dry land," crowned with verdure and 
beauty ; together with every thing that liveth in the 
waters, or on the earth ; all are under the govern- 
ment of our God ; by him were all things created ; 
by him have all things been redeemed. 

6. O come, let us worship and bow down : let us 
kneel before the Lord our Maker. 

As in the beginning of the Psalm we were called 
upon to " praise" Jehovah, so here we are invited to 
humble ourselves before him in " prayer." From 
him we had our being ; him, therefore we are to sup- 
plicate for every other blessing, both in this life, and 
that which is to come. And since he made our bo- 
dies, as well as our souls, it is meet and right that 
they should bear their part in his service, and that 
internal worship should be accompanied and signified 
by that which is external. 

7. For he is our God, and we are the people of his 
pasture, and the sheep of his hand. 

An additional reason why we should both praise 
Jehovah, and pray to him, is the peculiar relation 
into which he hath been pleased to put himself by 
the covenant of grace; " he is our God ;" we are the 
objects of his tender care, and unspeakable love: we 
are his " people/' and his " sheep ;" his chosen flock, 
which he hath purchased with his blood, which he 



244 Commentary on Psalm xcv. 

feeds with his word, and refreshes with his Spirit, 
in fair and pleasant pastures. From those pastures, 
O thou good Shepherd ! suffer us not to stray ; or, 
if we do stray, bring us speedily back again, by any 
means which thou, in thine infinite wisdom, shalt 
think fit. Wholesome is the discipline which drives 
us into the fold, and keeps us there. 

8. To-day if ye will hear his voice, harden not 
your hearts as in the provocation, and as in the day 
of temptation in the wilderness. 9. When your fa- 
thers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work. 

The first clause of these two verses may be joined 
to the preceding verse, thus, " He is our God, we 
are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his 
hand, if ye will hear his voice to-day ;" that is, if ye 
will be his obedient people, he will continue to be 
your God. Or else the word DM, translated " if," 
may be rendered in the optative form, " O that you 
would hear his voice to-day/' saying unto you, 
" Harden not," &c. However this be, what follows 
to the end of the Psalm is undoubtedly spoken in the 
person of God himself, who may be considered as 
addressing US, in these latter days, by the Gospel of 
his Son ; for so the apostle teaches us to apply the 
whole passage, Heb. iii. iv. The Israelites, when 
they came out of Egypt, had a day of probation^ and 
a promised rest to succeed it ; but by unbelief and 
disobedience, they to whom it was promised, that is, 
the generation of those who came out of Egypt, fell 
short of it, and died in the wilderness. The Gospel, 
in like manner, offers, both to Jew and Gentile, ano- 
ther day of probation in this world, and another pro- 
mised rest to succeed it, which remaineth for the 
people of God, in heaven. All whom it concerns 
are, therefore, exhorted to beware lest they forfeit 
the second rest, as murmuring and rebellious Israel 
came short of. the first. The verses now before us 
allude to what passed at the place called " Massah," 
and " Meribah," from the people there " tempting" 



Commentary on Psalm xcv. 245 

and striving with their God, notwithstanding all the 
mighty works which he had wrought for them, be- 
fore their eyes. Exod. xvii. 7. 

10. Forty years long was I grieved, or, disgusted, 
with this generation, and said. It is a people that do 
err in their hearts, and they have not known my 
wdys. 

O the desperate presumption of man, that he should 
offend his Maker " forty years!" O the patience 
and long suffering of his Maker, that he should allow 
him forty years to offend in ! Sin begins in the 
" heart," by its desires " wandering and going astray 
after forbidden objects ; whence follows inattention 
to the ways" of God ; to his dispensations, and our 
own duty. Lust in the heart, like vapour in the 
stomach, soon affects the head, and clouds the un- 
derstanding. 

11. Unto whom I sware in my wrath, that they 
should not enter into my rest. 

Exclusion from Canaan was the punishment of 
Israelitish contumacy ; exclusion from heaven is to 
be the punishment of disobedience among Christians. 
To take vengeance on those who reject the Gospel 
terms, is no less a part of the covenant and oath of 
God, than it is to save and glorify those who accept 
them. Yet men continue deliberately to commit 
those sins, which the Almighty standeth thus en- 
gaged to punish with destruction*." " Take heed," 
therefore, " brethren, lest there be in any of you an 
evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living 
God. But exhort one another daily, while it is called 

* Sensus hujus loci ex Paulo sic concinnandus : nempe re- 
quiem a Deo Israelitis esse promissam in terra Chanansea: 
omnes tamen interim in deserto cecidisse hac requie frustra- 
tes: quareSpiritum Sanctum per Davidem ad novam requiem 
invitasse : ad novum illud sabbatum ab ipso mundi exordio 
diei septimse requie figuratum, novumque indixisse diem quo 
sub Christo, in Ecclesia, ac coeiesti patria quiesceremus, nisi 
essemus increduli : unde sic concludit Paulus: " Festinemus 
ingredi in illam requiem/' Bossuet. 

M 3 



246 Commentary on Psalm xcviii. 



To-day ; lest any of you be hardened through the de- 
ceitfulness of sin. For we are made partakers of 
Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence 
steadfast unto the end ; while it is said, To-day, if 
ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts as in 
the provocation. For some when they had heard, 
did provoke ; howbeit, not all that came out of Egypt 
by Moses. But with whom was he grieved forty 
years 1 Was it not with them that had sinned, whose 
carcasses fell in the wilderness? And to whom sware 
he, that they should not enter into his rest, but to 
them that believed not ? So we see that they could 
not enter in because of unbelief. Let us therefore 
fear, lest, a promise being made us of entering into 
his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. 
For unto us was the Gospel preached, as well as 
unto them ; but the word preached did not profit 
them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard 
it." Heb. iii. 12, &c. 



PSALM XCVIII. 
To be used at Evening Prayer. 

ARGUMENT. 

In this evangelical hymn, the Prophet, 1 — 3. extols 
the miracles, the victory, the salvation, the righ- 
teousness, the mercy, and truth, of the Redeemer; 
on account of which, 4 — 9. he calls upon man, 
and the whole creation, to rejoice and praise 
Jehovah. 

1. O sing unto the Lord a new song, for he hath 
done marvellous things: his right hand and his holy 
arm hath gotten him the victory. 

New mercies and wonders demand new songs. 



Commentary on Psalm xcviii. 24? 

And what mercies, what wonders, can be compared 
with those wrought by the holy Jesus! " Go and tell 
John/' saith he to John's disciples ; go and tell all the 
world, saith he to his own disciples, " the things 
which ye see and hear;" the marvellous things which 
I do to the bodies and to the souls of men. "The blind 
receive their sight," and the ignorant minds are en- 
lightened with knowledge ; " the lame walk," and 
strength is communicated to impotent souls : " the 
lepers are cleansed," and the lascivious rendered 
chaste; " the deaf hear," and the obstinate listen to 
instruction and reproof; " the dead are raised," and 
sinners justified ; " the Gospel is preached," and the 
world converted. " His own right hand, and his 
holy arm," hath done these marvellous things, with- 
out and against all worldly power ; not by spear and 
sword, but by patience and charity, he hath " gotten 
the victory," and gained the glorious day. 

2. The Lord hath made known his salvation : 
his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight 
of the heathen. 

The. " salvation" of Jehovah was made known" 
by the preaching of Christ himself in Judea, for the 
space of three years ; his " righteousness," whereby 
sinners are justified, was " openly showed," by the 
sermons of his apostles, " in the sight of the hea- 
then." Still let that salvation be made known, still 
let that righteousness be openly shewed, by the mi* 
nisters of the Gospel, until the fulness of the Gen- 
tiles be come in, and the remnant of the Jews con- 
verted; until antichrist be overthrown and death 
himself fallen before the all-conquering cross. 

3. He hath rememhered his mercy and truth to- 
wards the house of Israel: all the ends of the earth 
have seen the salvation of our God. 

In sending the Messiah, God shewed himself mind- 
ful of the promises, which " mercy" prompted him 
to make, and " truth" required him to perform, 
These promises were made to « the house of Israel ;" 
M 4 



248 Commentary on Psalm x evil I. 

to the lost sheep of that house, Christ declared him- 
self sent; and the apostles offered salvation first to the 
Jews : but to them it was never intended that evan- 
gelical blessings should be confined. The prophets 
spake in plain terms of the call of the Gentiles, who 
were to be adopted into the holy family, and made 
the children of Abraham. The Gospei was accord- 
ingly preached to the nations, the apostles made their 
progress through the world, and '* all the ends of 
the earth saw the salvation of God." The Jews fell 
from the faith of their fathers, and to this day, con- 
tinue in their apostacy. And are not the Gentiles, 
in their turn, falling away, after the same example 
of unbelief ? " Remember," yet once again, O Lord, 
thy " mercy and truth toward the house of Israel f 
yet once again let " all the ends of the earth see thy 
salvation." 

4. Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the 
earth ; make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing 
praise. 5. Sing unto the Lord with the harp; 
with the harp, and the voice of a psalm. 6. With 
trumpets and sound of a cornet make a joyful noise 
before the Lord the King, 

The Psalmist, beholding in spirit the accomplish- 
ment of the promises, the advent of Christ, and the 
glory of his kingdom, thinks it criminal in any crea- 
ture to be silent ; he bids the whole earth break forth 
into joy, and exult in God our Saviour, with every 
token of gratitude and thankfulness ; with voices, 
and instruments of all kinds, in perfect harmony, 
with tempers and affections according in like man- 
ner, men are enjoined to sound aloud the praises of 
their great Redeemer. 

7. Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; the 
world, and they that dwell therein. 8. Let the 
floods clap their hands, let the hills be joyful to- 
gether, 9. before the Lord; for he cometh to judge 
the earth ; with righteousness shall he judge the 
world, and the people with equity. 



Commentary on Psalm c. 



249 



The inanimate parts of creation are called upon 
to bear their parts in the new song, and to fill up the 
universal chorus of praise and thanksgiving, in hon- 
our of him that sitteth upon the throne. Or, per- 
haps, the converted Heathen nations are intended 
under the figures of the " sea," the " rivers," and the 
" hills," and.their exultations expressed by the noise 
of many waters, their beauty and fruitfulness by 
those of the hills, when, crowned with plenty, they, 
as it were, laugh and sing, at the approach of har- 
vest. The subject of this general joy is, as before, 
in Psalm xcvi. 13. the advent of Messiah to reform 
the world, to execute judgment upon the wicked, 
and to establish a kingdom of righteousness upon 
the earth. We expect his second advent to restore 
all things, to judge the world, to condemn his ene- 
mies, and to begin his " glorious" reign. Then shall 
heaven and earth rejoice, and the joy of the re- 
deemed shall be full. 



PSALM C. 

To be used at Morning Prayer, 
ARGUMENT. 

The Psalmist invites all the world to join with the 
Israelites in the service of him who was kind and 
gracious to them beyond expression. Accord- 
ingly, we Christians now properly use this Psalm 
in acknowledgment of God's wonderful love to us 
in Christ; by whom we offer up continually spiri- 
tual sacrifices, for redeeming us by the sacrifice 
which he made of himself ; for making the world 
anew, and creating us again unto good works ; 



250 Commentary on Psalm c. 



according to his faithful promises, which we may 
depend upon for ever.— Patrick. 

1. Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye 
lands: 2. Serve the Lord with gladness : come be- 
fore his presence with singing. 

The Prophet addresseth himself to " all lands," or 
to 6 * all the earth;" to Gentiles, as well as Jews. He 
exhorteth them to " make a joyful noise," a noise 
like that of the trumpets at the time of jubilee, a 
sound of universal triumph and exultation, in hon- 
our of" Jehovah," now become their Lord and Sa- 
viour. The service of this our Master is perfect 
freedom; it is a service of love, a freedom from 
Pharaoh and the task-masters, from Satan and our 
own imperious lusts; it is a redemption from the 
most cruel bondage, into the glorious liberty of the 
sons of God. Let us therefore do as we are com- 
manded: " let us serve the Lord with gladness," and 
when we come " before his presence" in the temple, 
let it be " with singing" to the praise and glory of 
our Redeemer. Thus he is served in heaven, and 
thus he delighteth to be served on earth. 

3. Know ye that the Lord he is God, it is he that 
hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his peo- 
ple, and the sheep of his pasture. Or, he hath made 
us, and we are his % his people and the sheep of his 
pasture. 

The motives here urged for serving and praising 
Jehovah, are the same with those above, in Psalm 
xcv. 6, 7. namely, that he is our " God," engaged 
by covenant on our behalf ; that his hands created 
us, and have since new created us ; that we stand in 
the peculiar relation of his " people," whom he hath 

*** I am persuaded that the Masoretical correction "[V)(and 
we are his) is right : the construction and parallelism both 
favour it." Bishop Lowth. A correspondent suggests — 
Might not, the clause be rendered interrogatively — n Arc not 
we his people, and the sheep of his pasture V 



Commentary on Psalm c. 



251 



chosen to himself, and over whom he presideth as 
King ; that we are " the sheep of his pasture," for 
whom the good Shepherd laid down his life, and 
whom he nourisheth, by the word and sacraments, 
unto eternal life- These are points which every 
Christian ought to " know" and believe, unto his 
soul's health. And whoever doth know them aright, 
will ever be ready with heart and voice to obey the 
injunction which followeth in the next verse. 

4. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and 
into his courts with praise : be thankful unto him, 
and bless his name. 

The Christian church is a temple, whose " gates" 
stand continually open, for the admission of the na- 
tions from all the four quarters of the world. Rev. 
xxi. 13. 25. Into the " courts" of this temple, 
which are now truly *' courts of the Gentiles," all 
men are invited to come, and offer their evangelical 
sacrifices of " confession and praise to express 
their gratitude to their Saviour, and " bless" his 
gracious and hallowed " name." How glorious will 
be that day, which shall behold the everlasting gates 
of heaven lifting up their heads, and disclosing to 
view those courts above, into which the children of 
the resurrection are to enter, there, with angels and 
archangels, to dwell and sing for evermore ! 

5. For the Lord is good: his mercy is everlast- 
ing : and his truth endureth to all generations. 

" Jehovah is good ;" he is the source of all beauty 
and perfection in the creature ; how altogether lovely 
must he needs be in himself! " His mercy is ever- 
lasting," extending through time into eternity ; and 
'* his truth," or fidelity in accomplishing his promises, 
" endureth to all generations," evidenced to the whole 

race of mankind, from Adam to his last born son . 

The Psalms which celebrate these attributes, will 
never, therefore, be out of date, but each successive 
generation will chant them with fresh propriety, and 



252 Commentary on Psalm en. 

fresh delight, until by saints and angels they are sung 
new in the kingdom of God. 



PSALM CII. 

One of the Proper Psalms appointed for 
Ash- Wednesday. 

ARGUMENT. 

This Psalm is entitled, " A prayer of the afflicted, 
when he is overwhelmed, and poureth out his com- 
plaint before the Lord." It seems to have been 
written, during the captivity, by one of the pro- 
phets, who like Daniel in parallel circumstances, 
1, 2. maketh supplication before his God, 3 — 11. 
setteth forth, in the most affecting strains, his 
wretched and sorrowful estate, or, rather, perhaps, 
that of Jerusalem, which he personates ; 12. he 
comforteth himself, by reflecting on the eternity 
and immutability of Jehovah ; 13 — 22. he predict- 
ed and describeth the restoration of Sion, with 
her enlargement by the accession of the Gentiles, 
when Messiah shall have visited and redeemed 
her ; 23, 24. he returneth again to his lamenta- 
tions ; but 25 — 28. again reposeth his confidence 
on him who created all things, and who would not 
fail to make good his word and promise, if not to 
the generation then present, yet to their posterity. 
This is the fifth of those styled " Penitential 
Psalms and St. Paul, Heb. i. 10. hath asserted, 



Commentary on Psalm en. 253 



that it is addressed to the eternal Son of God, 
and Saviour of the world. 

1. Hear my prayer, O Lord, and let my cry 
come unto thee, 2. Hide not thy face from me in 
the day when / am in trouble ; incline thine ear unto 
me: in the day when 1 call, answer me speedly. 

Sin and sorrow force " prayers" and " cries" from 
the sons of Adam. The first petition here preferred 
is, that these prayers and cries may be " heard" in 
heaven. The day of human life is '•' a day of trouble," 
a day of darkness and gloominess, which nothing can 
brighten, but the light of God's " countenance;" 
nothing can render comfortable, but a " speedy an- 
swer" of mercy and peace from above. 

3. For my days are consumed away like^ or, in 
smoke, and my bones are burnt as an hearth , or, a 
fire-brand. 

The effects of extreme grief on the human frame 
are compared to those which fire produceth upon 
fuel. It exhausts the radical moisture, and, by so 
doing,, soon consumes the substance. A man's time 
and his strength evaporate in melancholy, and his 

bones," those pillars and supports of his body, be- 
come like wood, on which the fire hath done its work, 
and left it without sap, and without cohesion. A 
single penitent, or a whole church, bewailing their 
respective transgressions, when under the rod of 
God, may use these words, and will understand the 
force of them. 

4. My heart is smitten and withered like grass : 
so that I forget to eat my bread. 

The metaphor is continued, and the " heart it- 
self, out of which flow the streams of life, is repre- 
sented as suffering that from grief, which the "grass" 
of the field suffers from the burning heat of the sun : 
it is " smitten, and withered." And when grief hath 
thus dejected the spirits, the man has no appetite for 

3 



254 Commentary on Psalm en. 

that food which is to recruit and elevate them.— 
Ahab, smitten with one kind of grief, David with 
another, and Daniel with a third, all " forgot," or 
" refused, to eat their bread:" 1 Kings xxi. 4. 
2 Sam. xii. 16. Dan. x. 3. Such natural companions 
#re " mourning and fasting." 

5. By reason of the voice of my groaning, my 
hones cleave to my skin. 

Extremity of sorrow causeth the flesh to waste, 
and the bones to press upon the skin, through which 
they are ready to force their way. Sickness is the 
chastisement of heaven, inflicted often upon us, to 
supply the want of that discipline, which we should 
exercise upon ourselves. " For if we would judge 
ourselves, we should not be judged. But when we 
are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we 
should not be condemned with the world." 1 Cor. 
xi. 31. 

6. I am like the pelican of the wilderness: I am 
like an owl, or, bittern, of the desert, or, of waste, 
ruinous places. 7. I watch, and am as a sparrow 
alone upon the house-top. 

The sorrowful man is naturally desirous of retiring 
from the world, to vent his complaints in solitude, 
and to pass the nights in watchfulness and prayer. 
In such a situation the true penitent placeth himself, 
worthily to bewail his sins, and deprecate the judg- 
ments of his God. And in such a situation did cap- 
tivity place the daughter of Sion, that she might do 
likewise. The use which Daniel made of it for this 
purpose, may be seen in his ixth chapter. 

8. Mine enemies reproach me all the day : and 
they that are mad against me, are siuorn against me. 

The scoffs and reproaches of men are generally 
added to the chastisements of God ; or rather, per- 
haps, are a part, and sometimes the bitterest part, of 
them. How the enemies of Jerusalem behaved, in 
the day of her calamity, is well known. How car- 



Commentary on Psalm en. 255 

nal and ungodly men behave to a penitent, when 
mourning for his sins, under the afflicting hand of 
Heaven, is as well known. 

9. For, or, Therefore, I have eaten ashes like 
bread, and mingled my drink with weeping. 10. Be- 
cause of thine indignation and wrath ; for thou hast 
lifted me up, and cast me down. 

By u eating ashes and drinking tears," we may 
understand the same as if it had been said, " I have 
eaten the bread of humiliation, and drank the water 
of affliction ashes being the emblem of one, and 
tears the consequence of the other; while the actions 
of " eating and drinking," intimate to us the fulness 
and satiety which the sufferer had experienced of 
both, from the " wrath and indignation of God." 
Prosperity and adversity are from him : " he lifteth 
up, ,and he casteth down ;" he lifted up Jerusalem 
above all the earth ; and he cast her down, to be 
trodden under foot by the Gentiles. 

11. My days are like a shadow that declineth: 
and I am withered like grass. 12. But thou, O 
Lord, shalt endure for ever; and thy remembrance 
unto all generations. 

A " shadow" never continueth in one stay, but is 
still gliding imperceptibly on, lengthening as it goes, 
and at last vanisheth into darkness. The period of 
its existence is limited to a day at farthest. The 
rising sun gives it birth, and in that moment when 
the sun sets it is no more. The <£ grass" of the field, 
in like manner, hath a being of the same duration. 
In the morning, clothed with verdure and beauty, it 
refresheth and delighteth the eye of the beholder; 
but the evening findeth it cut down, dried up, and 
withered. Such is the life of man, sojourning in the 
land of his captivity, and doing penance for his sins. 
But the eternity of Jehovah, the infallibility of his 
promises, and the remembrance of his former works 
and mercies, comfort our hearts, and encourage us 



256 Commentary on Psalm cil. 



to hope, nay, even to rejoice, in the midst of sorrow 
and tribulation. 

13. Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Sion ; 
for the time to favour her, yea, the set time is come. 
14. For thy servants take pleasure in her stones, 
and favour the dust thereof. 

From this passage, and what follows, it appears, 
that the suppliant in this Psalm, bewails not only 
his own miseries, but those of the church. Israel 
was in captivity, and Sion a desolation. A " time" 
notwithstanding-, a " set time," there was at hand, 
when God had promised to " arise, and to have mercy 
upon her." The bowels of her children yearned over 
her ruins ; they longed to see her rebuilt, and were 
ready, whenever the word of command should be 
given, to set heart and hand to the blessed work. 
Such ought to be our affection towards our Sion, 
however afflicted and destitute she may, at any time, 
appear to be; such should be our faith in the pro- 
mises of God concerning the future glorification of 
his church, at the time appointed. 

15. So the heathen shall fear the name of the 
Lord: and all the kings of the earth thy glory, 
16. When the Lord shall build up Sion, he shall 
appear in his glory. 17. He will regard the prayer 
of the destitute, and not despise their prayer. 

The object to which the prophets of old had chiefly 
respect, was not only the deliverance of Israel from 
Babylon, and the rebuilding of the material temple, 
but the salvation of sinners, and the erection of the 
Christian church, in the days of Messiah's kingdom. 
" When the Lord" Jesus thus " built up Sion, he 
appeared in his glory : the heathen feared his name, 
and all the kings of the earth" adored his majesty, be- 
cause he had " regarded the prayer of the destitute" 
sons of Adam, in their worse than Babylonish capti- 
vity,, and had arisen himself to be their Saviour and 
mighty Deliverer. We, in these latter days, look 



Commentary on Psalm en. 257 

and pray for the second appearance of the same Re- 
deemer with power and great glory, to raise the 
dead, and to build up from the dust a Jerusalem 
which shall experience no more vicissitudes, but 
continue for ever in unchangeable beauty and 
brightness. 

18. This shall be written for the generation to 
come and the people which shall be created shall 
praise the Lord. 

The history of " this" redemption and restoration 
by Messiah, thus foretold, hath been " written" in 
the Gospel for the benefit of " after generations," to 
the end " that the people who are created" anew in 
Christ Jesus, may from age to age praise Jehovah, 
ia psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs ; as it is 
done at this day in the church, and ever will continue 
to be done, till the choirs of heaven and earth shall 
be united before the throne of the Lamb. 

19. For he hath looked down from the height of 
his sanctuary : from heaven did the Lord behold 
the earth ; 20. To hear the groaning of the prisoner, 
to loose those that are appointed to death ; 21. To 
declare the name of the Lord in Sion^ and his praise 
in Jerusalem ; 22. When the people are gathered 
together y and the kingdoms, to serve the Lord. 

Redemption is the subject of praise in the Chris- 
tian church ; and the process of that great work is 
here described by images borrowed from the tem- 
poral deliverance and restoration of Israel. God is 
represented as looking with an eye of pity from hea- 
ven upon poor mankind ; as hearing the groans of 
sinners, fast bound in the chains of their sins, and 
sentenced to death eternal; as coming down to for- 
give and to release them ; that, being so forgiven and 
released, they might cause the church to resound with 
his praises, when, upon the preaching of the Gospel., 
it should be filled with converts, assembled from 
every people and kingdom of the world. Look down 
O Lord Jesu, yet once again upon thy servants, still 



258 Commentary on Psalm cii. 

under the dominion of death, and the bondage of 
corruption ; loose these chains, even these also, O 
Lord, and bring us forth into the glorious liberty of 
thy children ; that, with the whole assembly of the 
redeemed, in the heavenly Jerusalem, we may bless 
and praise thy name for ever and ever. 

23. He weakened my strength in the way ; he 
shortened my days. 

The Prophet, in the person of captive Sion, hav- 
ing, from verse 13, to verse 22, expressed his faith 
and hope in the promised redemption, now returns 
to his mournful complaints, as at verse 11. Israel 
doubteth not of God's veracity, but feareth lest his 
heavy hand should crush the generation then in be- 
ing, before they should behold the expiration of their 
troubles. They were in " the way," but their 
" strength" was so " weakened," and their " days 
shortened," that they almost despaired of holding out 
to their journey's end. A sore trial hath the Chris* 
tian church to undergo in the last days, before the 
second advent of her Lord and Saviour. Strong 
faith and invincible patience will be necessary, to 
enable her to endure until the end shall come. 

24. And I said, O my God, take me not away in 
the midst of my days : thy years are throughout all 
generations. 

Israel prayeth that the holy seed might not be ex- 
tirpated, and perish by a kind of untimely death, ere 
yet the promise had been made good, and Sion had 
seen the salvation of her God. Every man hath 
reason to pray, that God would not " take him away 
in the midst of his days," or call upon him when un- 
prepared ; but that time may be allowed him to per- 
fect his repentance, and to work out his salvation. 

25. Of old hast thou laid the foundation of the 
earth ; and the heavens are the work of thy hands. 
26. They shall perish, but thou shalt endure ; yea, 
all of them shall wax old like a garment, as a vesture 
shalt thou change them, and they shall be changed* 



Commentary on Psalm Gil. 259 

27. But thou art the same, and thy years shall 
have no end. 

Amidst the changes and chances of this mortal life, 
one topic of consolation will ever remain, namely, 
the eternity and immutability of God our Saviour, 
of him who was, and is, and is to come. Kingdoms 
and empires may rise and fall ; nay the heavens and 
the earth, as they were originally produced and 
formed by the WORD of God, the Son, or second 
person in the Trinity, to whom the Psalmist here ad- 
dresseth himself, see Heb. i. 10 ; so will they, at the 
day appointed, be folded up and laid aside, as an 
old and worn-out garment ; or, if the substance re- 
main, the present form and fashion of them will pe- 
rish, and they will be utterly changed and altered 
from the state in which they now are. But Jehovah 
is ever the same; his years have no end, nor can his 
promise fail, any more than himself. " Heaven and 
earth" saith he, " shall pass away ; but my words 
shall not pass away." Matt. xxiv. 35. 

28. The children of thy servants shall continue ; 
and their seed shall be established before thee. 

Whatever be the fate of the present generation, 
whether they may live to see the accomplishment of 
all that has been foretold, or not, yet the word of 
God standeth sure ; there shall be always a church, 
and a holy seed, to whom the promises shall be 
made good. They have already been fulfilled with 
regard to the advent of Messiah, and the vocation 
of the Gentiles. The events which are behind will 
be brought forward and come to pass in their seasons, 
until the counsel of God shall be finished, and every 
prediction receive its full accomplishment in the glo- 
rification of the redeemed. 



260 Commentary on Psalm CIV. 



PSALM CIV. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Whit- Sunday. 

ARGUMENT. 

This is an eucbaristic hymn, full of majesty and 
sweetness, addressed to Jehovah, as Creator of the 
world. It setteth forth his glory, wisdom, good- 
ness, and power displayed, 1 — 9. in the formation 
of the heavens and earth ; 10 — 18. in the various 
provision made for beasts, and birds, and for man, 
the lord of all ; 19 — 24. in the revolutions of the 
celestial bodies, and the consequent interchanges 
of day and night, of labour and rest ; 25, 26. in 
the sea, and every thing that moveth in or upon 
the waters. 27 — 30. The dependence of the 
whole creation upon God, for its being and well- 
being, is beautifully represented, with, 31, 32. the 
glory which the Creator receiveth from his works, 
the pleasure which he taketh in them, and the 
power which he hath over them. 33. The Psalmist 
declareth his resolution ever to praise Jehovah, 
and, 34. predicteth the destruction of those who 
refuse or neglect so to do. As there is a simi- 
litude between the natural and the spiritual crea- 
tion, allusions of that sort are frequently made in 
the ensuing comment, which may, perhaps, point 
out the reason why the church hath appointed this 
Psalm to be used on Whit-sunday. 

1. Bless the Lord, O my soul: O Lord my God t 
thou art very great, thou art clothed with honour 



Commentary on Psalm civ. 261 

and majesty ; Heb. with glory and beauty. 2. Who 
cover est thyself with light as with a garment ; who 
stretchest out the heavens like a curtain, i. e. of a 
tent, or pavilion. 

The Scriptures inform us, that the same Person, 
who redeemed the world, did also create it. In the 
ciid Psalm, as we are assured by St. Paul, " to the 
Son it is said, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast 
laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are 
the works of thy hands." To him, therefore, as 
Creator, is the civth Psalm likewise addressed. He 
is described as invested with " the glory which he 
had with the Father before the world was a glimpse 
of which he vouchsafed to the three disciples, who 
were present at his transfiguration, when " his face 
did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as 
the light." The first instance of his creating power 
is afforded us by the " heavens," which form a mag- 
nificent " canopy, or pavilion," comprehending 
within it the earth, and all the inhabitants thereof. 
It is enlightened by the celestial orbs suspended in 
it, as the holy tabernacle was, by the lamps of the 
golden candlestick, and it was originally framed, 
erected, and furnished by its Maker, with more ease 
than man can construct and pitch a " tent" for his 
own temporary abode. Yet must this noble pavilion 
also be taken down ; these resplendent and beautiful 
heavens must pass away, and come to an end. How 
glorious then shall be those " new heavens," which 
are to succeed them, and to endure for ever ! 

3. Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the 
waters : who maheth the clouds his chariot : who 
walketh upon the wings of the wind. 

The divine Architect is here represented as "lay- 
ing the beams of his chambers," as compacting his 
lofts or stories, " in the waters." Some think the 
formation of the terrestrial strata in the waters, which 
at the beginning covered all things, is here alluded 
to. If it be objected, that the Psalmist, in the course 



262 Commentary on Psalm CIV. 

of his description, is not yet arrived at the formation 
of the earth, but is still in the upper regions of the 
air; may we not suppose that the subject is, in this 
particular, a little anticipated, which is no uncommon 
case in the sacred writings ? The generality of ex- 
positors, however, interpret the passage of those 
" dark waters, compacted into thick clouds of the 
skies," which the Almighty is elsewhere said to 
make the " secret place or chamber" of his resi- 
dence, and a kind of " footstool" to his throne. 
Ps. xviii. 9. 11. And thus, indeed, the former part 
of our verse is plainly and immediately connected 
with what follows : " who maketh the clouds his 
chariot, and walketh upon the wings of the wind." 
How astonishingly magnificent and tremendous is 
the idea which these words convey to us, of the great 
King riding upon the heavens, encompassed with 
clouds and darkness, attended by the lightnings, 
those ready executioners of his vengeance, and caus- 
ing the world to resound and tremble at the thunder 
of his power, and the noise of his chariot wheels ! 
By these ensigns of royalty, these emblems of omni- 
potence, and instruments of his displeasure, doth 
Jehovah manifest his presence, when he visiteth re- 
bellious man, to make him own and adore his neglect- 
ed and insulted Lord. See and compare Ps. xviii. 
10. and the context. 

4. Who maketh his angels spirits ; his ministers 
a flaming fire. 

From the manner in which these words are intrb-_ 
duced, and the place where they stand, one should 
conceive the meaning of them to be, that God em- 
ploy eth the elements of air and fire, the winds j"flrrn, 
and the lightnings, as his messengers, VON^D> and 
ministers, to execute his commands upon the earth *. 
But the apostle, Heb, i. 7. informeth us, that they 

* In the French translation it is—" Who maketh the winds 
his angels, the flaming lire his ministers/' 



Commentary on Psalm civ. 263 

have a further reference to immaterial angels ; either 
because those angels often appeared in the likeness, 
or because they were endued with the properties, of 
" wind and flame." Intellectual beings of the high- 
est order in the realms above, are as ready to fulfil 
the word of Jehovah, as are the elements of this 
lower world. Both teach a lesson of obedience to 
the sons of men ; to those of them more especially, 
who are appointed " angels" of the churches, and 
" ministers" of Christ." 

5. Who laid the foundations of the earth, that it 
should not be removed for ever. 

In the original it is, " Who bath founded the 
earth upon its bases." The formation of this globe 
on which we tread, is a wonderful instance of divine 
wisdom and power, whether we consider the manner 
in which the parts of it are put and kept together, or 
its suspension in the circumambient fluid, which, as 
some philosophers suppose, by pressing upon it on 
every side, form so many columns, as it were, to 
support, and keep^it balanced. The words, "that it 
should not be removed for ever," do by no means 
imply, that the earth is stationary, or that it is eter- 
nal ; but only thus much, that it is so constructed, as 
to answer the end, and to last the time for which it was 
created and intended. It shall continue the same in 
itself, and with relation to other bodies, neither alter- 
ing its shape, nor changing its course, till the day 
appointed for its dissolution ; after which, as there 
are to be " new heavens," so will there also be a 
" new earth." 

6. Thou cover edst it with the deep, as with a gar- 
ment: the waters stood above the mountains. 7. At 
thy rebuke they fled; at the voice of thy thunder 
they hasted away. 8. They go, or, went, up by the 
mountains: they go, or, went, down by the valleys, 
unto the place which thou hast founded for them. 
9. Thou hast set a bound that they may not pass 
over : that they turn not again to cover the earth. 



264 Commentary on Psalm civ. 

Most interpreters suppose this to be a description 
of the situation of things, and of what was effected 
by the power of God, on the third day of the crea- 
tion, when he said, " Let the waters be gathered to- 
gether into one place, and let the dry land appear ; 
and it was so." Indeed, the process at the creation 
was so exactly similar to that at the deluge, with re- 
gard to the circumstances here mentioned, that it 
matters not to which we apply the beautiful and truly 
poetical passage before us. In both cases, the earth 
was covered with the waters, as with a garment, in 
every part ; in both cases, they fled at the Almighty 
word, like the scattered remains of a routed army ; 
from the heights of mountains, whither they had 
ascended, they sunk down into the valleys ; from the 
valleys they retired to the bed of the ocean, and a 
part of them descended from thence into the great 
deep that lieth beneath. Bounds were set them, be- 
yond which they should never pass, to overwhelm 
us any more for ever. And the experience of 4000 
years hath taught us, that where the Creator hath 
laid his commands, plain sand is a sufficient barrier. 
Thus the church hath been delivered from her spiri- 
tual enemies ; and she hath a promise, on which she 
may with full confidence rely, that * the gates of hell 
shail never prevail against her.' 

10. He sendeth the springs into the valley s, which 
run among the hills. 11. They give drink to every 
beast of the field; the wild asses quench their thirst. 

The waters of the sea are not only prevented from 
destroying the earth, but, by a wonderful machinery, 
are rendered the means of preserving every living 
thing which moveth thereon. Partly ascending from 
the great deep through the strata of the earth, partly 
exhaled in vapour from the surface of the ocean into 
the air, and from thence falling in rain, especially 
on the tops and by the sides of mountains, they 
break forth in fresh springs, having left their salts 
behind them ; they trickle through the valleys, be- 



Commentary on Psalm civ. 265 



tween the hills, receiving new supplies as they go; 
they become large rivers, and after watering, by their 
innumerable turnings and windings, immense tracts 
of country, they return to the place from whence 
they came. Thus every animal hath an opportunity 
of quenching that thirst, which must otherwise soon 
put a period to its existence. The " wild asses" are 
particularly mentioned, because they live in remote 
and sandy deserts; yet even such creatures, in such 
places, are by the God of nature taught the way to 
the waters; insomuch that the parched traveller, 
when in search of a fountain, findeth them to be the 
best guides in the world, and needeth only to observe 
and follow the herds of them descending to the 
streams. In the spiritual system, or new creation, 
there are wells of salvation, living springs, waters of 
comfort, of which all nations, even the most savage 
and barbarous, are invited to come and drink freely. 
They flow among the churches; they descend into 
the hearts of the lowly ; and they refresh us in the 
passage through the wilderness: for even there " do 
waters break out, and streams in the desert." Isa. 
xxxv. 6. 

12. By them shall the fowls of the air have their 
habitation, which sing among the branches. 

" By them," that is, by" springs of water," in the 
" valleys," the birds delight to have their habitations, 
and to sing amidst the verdant branches, which con- 
ceal them from our sight. " The music of birds," as 
one hath well observed, " was the first song of 
thanksgiving which was offered on earth before man 
was formed. All their sounds are different, but all 
harmonious, and all together compose a choir which 
we cannot imitate*." If these little choristers of 
the air, when refreshed by the streams near which 
they dwell, express their gratitude by chanting, in 

* Wesley's Survey of the Wisdom of God in the Creation, 
1. 149. 

N 



266 



Commentary on Psalm civ*. 



their way, the praises of their Maker and Preserver* 
how ought Christians to blush, who besides the com- 
forts and conveniences of this world, are indulged 
with copious draughts of the water of eternal life, if, 
for so great blessings, they pay not their tribute of 
thanksgiving, and sing not unto the Lord the songs 
of Sion ! " He that at midnight, when the very la- 
bourer sleeps securely, should hear, as I have often 
done, the clear airs, the sweet descants, the natural 
rising and falling, the doubling, and redoubling, of 
the nightingale's voice, might well be lifted above 
earth, and say, Lord, what music hast thou provided 
for the saints in heaven, when thou afford est bad men 
such music upon earth !" Walton's Complete Angler, 
p. 9. 

13. He watereth the hills from his chambers : the 
earth is satisfied with the fruit of thy works. 14. 
He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle , and 
herb for the service of man: that he may briny forth 
food out of the earth ; 15. And wine that maketh 
glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to 
shine, and bread, which strengtheneth mans heart. 

The fertility of the earth is owing to God, who for 
that purpose " watereth" it, Y\TT)vyD> " from his 
chambers," whether the word hath a reference to the 
clouds above, or the depths below, for both are con- 
cerned in the operation. Hence all the glory and 
beauty of the vegetable world ; hence the grass, 
which nourisheth the cattle, that they may nourish 
the human race ; hence the green herb, for food and 
for medicine; hence fields covered with corn, for the 
support of life; hence vines and olive-trees laden 
with fruits, whose juices exhilarate the heart, and 
brighten the countenance. Nor let us forget the 
spiritual benedictions corresponding to these exter- 
nal ones; the fruitfulness of the church through 
grace, the bread of everlasting life, the cup of salva- 
tion, and the oil of gladness. 

16. The trees of the Lord are full of sap ; the 
cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted. 



Commentary on Psalm CIV. 267 

The whole earth is a garden, planted by the hand, 
and watered by the care, of Jehovah. But in a 
more especial manner is his glory set forth by the lofty 
and magnificent cedars, which, growing wild on the 
mountain and in the forest, owe nothing to the skill 
and industry of man. The moisture of the earth, 
rarefied by the heat of the sun, enters their roots, 
ascends in their tubes, and by due degrees expands 
and increases them, till they arrive at their growth. 
God hath also another garden, in which there are 
other trees of his planting, called by Isaiah lxi. 3. 
" trees of righteousness/' These are his faithful 
servants, who, through the Spirit which is given unto 
them, become eminent and steady in goodness; their 
examples are fragrant, and their charity diffusive. 

17. Where the birds make their nests: as for the 
stork, the fir-trees are her house. 

Most admirable is that wisdom and understanding*, 
which the Creator hath imparted to the birds of the 
air, whereby they distinguish times and seasons, 
choose the properest places, construct their nests 
with an art and exactness unattainable by man, and 
secure and provide for their young. " Is it for the 
birds, O Lord, who have no knowledge thereof, that 
thou hast joined together so many miracles ? Is it for 
the men who give no attention to them? Is it for 
those who admire them, without thinking of thee ? 
Rather is it not thy design, by all these wonders, to 
call us to thyself? to make us sensible of thy wisdom, 
and fill us with confidence in thy bounty, who 
watchest so carefully over these inconsiderable crea- 
tures, two of which are sold for a farthing* r" 

18. The high hills are a refuge for the wild goals, 
and the rocks for the conies. 

The same force of what we call instinct prevails 
in terrestrial animals, and directs them to places of 
refuge, where they may be safe from their enemies. 



* Wesley, as above. 
N 2 



268 Commentary on Psalm civ. 

Thus the wild goats climb with ease to the tops and 
crags of mountains, where they deposit their young. 
And thus animals of another kind, which are more 
defenceless than the goats, and not able to climb like 
them, have yet a way of intrenching themselves, in a 
situation perfectly impregnable, among the rocks* ; 
we find them on that account, numbered by Solo- 
mon among the " four" kinds of animals, which, 
though little upon the earth, are exceeding wise. 
" The D03ttf are Dut a feeble folk, yet make they 
their houses in the rocks :" Prov. xxx. 26. They 
who in themselves are " feeble" and helpless, should 
look out betimes for a mountain of refuge, and a rock 
of safety. 

19. He appointeth the moon for seasons : the sun 
knoweth his going down. 

From a survey of the works of God upon earth, 
the Psalmist proceedeth to extol that divine wisdom 
which is manifested in the motions and revolutions 
of the heavenly bodies, and in the grateful vicissi- 
tude of day and night occasioned thereby. A 
beautiful passage in the book of Ecclesiasticus will, 
perhaps, be the best comment on ^the former part of 
this verse : " He made the moon to serve in her 
season, for a declaration of times, and a sign to the 
world. From the moon is the sign of feasts, a light that 
decreaseth in her perfection. The month is called 
after her name, increasing wonderfully in her 
changing, being an instrument of the armies above, 
shining in the firmament of heaven; the beauty of 
heaven, the glory of the stars, an ornament giving 
light in the highest places of the Lord xlii. 6. 
The latter part of the verse expresseth the obedience 
of the " sun," or " solar light," to the law of its 
Creator ; it seemeth to " know" the exact time of 

* It is uncertain what species of animals is here intended 
by the word D^5)t#. But it is enough for our purpose, that 
they are creatures remarkable for securing themselves in the 
manner here mentioned. 



Commentary on Psalm civ. 269 

its coming on, and going off, and fulfilleth the course 
prescribed to it, without the least deviation. O that 
we who are endowed with sense and reason, could in 
like manner fulfil our course ; and that God's will 
were " done on earth," as it is even " in" this lower 
and material " heaven !" 

20. Thou makest darkness, and it is night ; 
wherein all the beasts of the forests do creep forth. 
21. The young lions roar after their prey, and seek 
their meat from God. 

Night and darkness invite the wild beasts of the 
forest and desert from their dens aud recesses, to 
" seek" the " prey" allotted them by the providence 
of that God who feedeth " the young lions," as well as 
the young ravens, when hunger enforceth them, as 
it were, to call upon him. Thus, when a nation hath 
filled up the measure of its iniquities, the Sun of 
Righteousness knoweth the time of his departure 
from it; the light of the Gospel is darkened, and a 
horrible night succeeds : the executioners of ven- 
geance are in motion, and a commission from above 
is given them to seize upon the prey. 

22. The sun ariseth, they gather themselves to- 
gether, and lay them down in their dens. 23. Man 
goeth forth to his work and to his labour, until the 
evening. 

At the return of day, the sons of ravage retire, and 
sculk away to their several hiding-places, that man, 
the lord of the creation, may arise, and perform, 
unmolested, the task which his Maker hath appointed 
him. When the light of truth and righteousness 
shineth, error and iniquity fly away before it, and the 
" roaring lion" himself departeth for a time. Then 
the Christian goeth forth to the work of his salva- 
tion, and to his labour of love, until the evening of 
old age warns him to prepare for his last repose, in 
faith of a joyful resurrection. 

24. O Lord, how manifold are thy works ! In 
N 3 



270 Commentary on Psalm civ. 

wisdom hast thou made them all : the earth is full of 
thy riches. 

Transported with a survey of the wonders which 
present themselves in heaven above, and on earth 
below, the Psalmist breaks forth into an exclamation 
(and what heart hath not already anticipated him?) 
on the variety and magnificence, the harmony and 
proportion, of the works of God, in this outward, 
and visible, and perishable world. What then are 
the miracles of grace and glory ? What are those in- 
visible and eternal things, which God hath prepared 
for them that love him, in another and a better world, 
and of which the things visible and temporary are no 
more than shadows? Admitted to that place, where 
we shall at once be indulged with a view of all the 
divine dispensations, and of that beatitude in which 
they terminate, shall we not, with angels and arch- 
angels, cry out, " O Lord, how manifold are thy 
works ! In wisdom hast thou made them all ; heaven 
and earth are full of thy riches, and of thy glory ¥' 

25. So is this great and wide sea, wherein are 
things creeping innumerable, both small and great 
beasts, or, living creatures. 26. There go the ships ; 
there is that leviathan, whom thou hast made to play 
therein. 

There is not in all nature a more august and 
striking object than the ocean. Its inhabitants are 
as numerous as those upon the land, nor is the 
wisdom and the power of the Creator less displayed, 
perhaps, in their formation and preservation, from 
the smallest fish that swims, to the enormous tyrant 
of the deep, the leviathan himself. By means of 
navigation, Providence hath opened a communication 
between the most distant parts of the globe ; the 
largest solid bodies are wafted, with incredible swift- 
ness, upon one fluid, by the impulse of another, and 
seas join the countries which they appear to divide. 
In the ocean we behold an emblem of the world ; 
under asmooth deceitful surface it conceals dangerou s 



Commentary on Psalm civ. 271 

rocks, and devouring monsters ; its waves are ever 
restless, and oftentimes it is all over storm and 
tempest, threateniug to overwhelm the helpless, de- 
spairing mariner, in a moment ; such is the voyage 
we all have to make, ere we can reach the desired 
haven, and attain that happy clime, where, as we are 
told, there is M no more SEA." Rev. xxi. 1. 

27. These wait all upon thee: that thou mayst 
give them their meat in due season. 28. That thou 
givest them, they gather : thou openest thine hand, 
they are filled with good. 

In various ways hath God provided food for the 
support of all living creatures, and directed them to 
seek, and to find it. How pleasing a speculation 
is it, to consider, the whole family of air, earth, aud 
sea, as " waiting upon" the Father and Lord of all 
thiugs expecting when he should M open his hand," 
and distribute to each member his " portion of meat 
in due season !" The case is the same with regard 
to beings intellectual and spiritual, of which is com- 
posed the church and family of Christ in heaven 
and earth ; these wait all upon him, by whom Je- 
hovah hath opened the hand of mercy, and abun- 
dantly supplied all our needs, through the riches of 
his grace. 

29. Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled; thou 
takest away their breath, they die and return to 
their dust. 30. Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they 
are created: and thou renewest the face of the 
earth. 

When God, in the season of winter, seemeth to 
hide his face, and to have withdrawn his beneficent 
influences, we hear the cries of the creation in dis- 
tress ; if he recall the breath of life from anv crea- 
ture, to which he had communicated it, that creature 
presently ceaseth to be what it was ; sense and mo- 
tion are at an end ; the form and figure of it perish ; 
and it is resolved into its original dust. But again 
be exerteth his quickening power, and, lo, fresh 
N 4 



272 Commentary on Psalm civ. 

generations of animals are produced ; fresh crops of 
vegetables shoot forth to nourish them ; and there is 
a renovation of universal nature. The presence of 
God, in like manner, is the life, his absence is the 
death, of the soul. If he withdraw his grace, we 
perish everlastingly ; but when he " sendeth forth 
his Spirit," as he did on the day of Pentecost, " old 
things pass away, and all things become new;" 
the winter is over, and spring succeeds in its place. 
Kay, the hour is coming, when, through the same 
Spirit, he shall also quicken our mortal bodies, and 
thus, in a more evident and wonderful manner, 
<e renew the face of the earth." 

31. The glory of the Lord shall endure for ever : 
the Lord shall rejoice in his works. 32. He looketh 
on the earth f and it trembleth ; he toucheth the hills, 
and they smoke. 

Such being the works of God, so manifold and so 
marvellous, the Prophet foretelleth, that his ''glory," 
displayed and declared by the same, should '* endure 
for ever ;" that creatures would never be wanting,, 
to give him the praise and honour due unto him; 
insomuch that, graciously accepting this theirtribute, 
and pleased to find a proper return made him, Jeho- 
vah should, as at the first creation, acquiesce and 
rejoice in all his works and dispensations. In the 
mean time, let the unruly and disobedient reflect 
upon the greatness of his power, and the terrors of 
his vengeance, who with a look can shake the earth, 
and with a touch can fire the mountains, as when he 
once descended on Sinai. 

33. I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live; 
I ivill sing praises unto my God, while I have my 
being. 34. My meditation of him shall be sweet : 1 
will be glad in the Lord. 

And Who, O divine Psalmist, will not " sing'' 
with thee, that hath an understanding to apprehend, 
and a tongue to celebrate, the works of his Maker 
and Redeemer? To whom will not thy heavenly 



Commentary on Psalm evil. 273 



meditations be sweet as honey, fragrant as the breath 
of spring, pleasant and cheering as the fruit of the 
vine ? Who doth not long to partake of thy spiritual 
joy, and holy gladness ? 

35. Let the sinners, or, the sinners shall, be con' 
sumed out of the earth, and let the wicked, or, the 
wicked shall, be no more. Bless thou the Lord, O 
my soxd. Praise ye the Lord. 

" The sinners," and " the wicked,' are they of 
whom it is elsewhere said, that they " consider not 
the works of Jehovah, nor regard the operations of 
his hands," to give him praise and glory for them. 
These shall one day experience the power of that 
God, whose wisdom and goodness they would never 
acknowledge. They shall be " consumed," and 
" perish from the presence of the Lord, and from 
the glory of his power, when he ariseth to shake 
terribly the earth. The Psalmist, therefore, endeth 
as he began ; " Bless thou the Lord, O my soul ;" 
adding, by way of exhortation to us, and to all the 
world, " Praise ye the Lord." Let us, then, with 
the " four and twenty elders, fall down before him 
that sitteth upon the throne, and worship him that 
Iiveth for ever and ever, saying, Thou art only worthy 
O Lord, to receive glory, aud honour, and power; 
for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure 
they are and were created." lie v. iv. 10, 11. 



PSALM CVII. 

To be used as a Thanksgiving after a Storm. 
ARGUMENT. 

The redeemed of the Lord are exhorted in this 
Psalm, 1 — 3. to praise him for his goodness in 
redeeming, and gathering them from the four 
N 5 



274 Commentary on Psalm evil. 

quarters of the world. Their danger and their 
deliverance are represented under the four striking- 
images, 4 — 9. of travellers lost in a wilderness, 
but directed and conducted home ; 10 — 16. of 
prisoners rescued from captivity ; 17—22. of 
sick and dying men restored to health ; 23—32, 
of mariners preserved in a storm at sea, and 
brought safe into port, 33 — 41. Some other in- 
stances of God's providence in the government of 
the world, and of the church, are adduced and 
insisted on, for, 42. the consolation of the righteous, 
and, 43. the instruction of all. 

1. O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good, 
for his mercy endureth for ever. 2. Let the re- 
deemed of the Lord say so, whom he hath redeemed 
from the hand of the enemy. 3. A nd gathered them 
out of the lands, from the east, and from the west y 
from the north and from the south. 

Eternal mercy is the theme here proposed ; and 
they who have tasted its sweets, are invited to join 
in setting forth its praises. The members of the 
Christian church are now, in the most proper and 
emphatical sense of the words, " the redeemed of 
Jehovah, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of 
the enemy, and gathered them," by the Gospel, out 
of all lands, and from all the four quarters of the 
world, to form a church, and to supply the place of 
the apostate Jews ; whose forefathers experienced, 
in type and shadow, the good things prepared for 
them and for us, in truth and substance. " Many," 
saith our Lord to the Jews, " shall come from the 
east, and from the west, and from the north, and 
from the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom 
of God — and ye yourselves shall be thrust out:", 
s Matt. viii. 11. Luke xiii. 29. We converted Gen- 
tiles, are the happy people : and we are taught in 



Commentary on Psalm evil. 275 

this Psalm to celebrate that mercy which made 
us so. 

4. They wandered in the wilderness, in a solitary 
way, they found no city to dwell in. 5. Hungry 
and thirsty , their soul fainted in them. (i. Then 
they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he 
delivered them out of their distresses. 7. And he led 
them forth by the right way, that they might go to a 
city of habitation. 

The spiritual blessings of redemption are repre- 
sented by the Psalmist under four exquisitely beau- 
tiful and expressive images ; which images are them- 
selves four special acts of God's providential care 
and love, shown toward the bodies of men in the 
world ; corresponding with as many works of grace, 
wrought on the son Is of believers, in the church. 
The first of these pictures exhibiteth to our view a 
set of travellers lost in a pathless desert, and well 
nigh famished through want of necessary provisions. 
They make their distresses known by prayer to 
Jehovah, and, lo, he appears, as their guard, and their 
guide; he supplies all their necessities upon the 
journey, and conducts them in safety to their place 
of abode. Thus he dealt with Israel of old, in their 
passage, through the waste and howling wilderness, 
from Egypt to Canaan. And thus he is ready to 
deal with us all. " The world," saith Lord Boling- 
broke # , " is a great wilderness^ wherein mankind 
have wandered about from the creation—We are not 
only passengers, or sojourners* but absolute strangers 
at the first steps we make in it." We are so, indeed ; 
and too often, through our own fault, continue such 
to the last ; we find not the way which leads to hea- 
vens nor > if we did find it, have we strength to 
travel in it, without the viaticum which cometh from 
thence, and which alone can bring us thither. Fer- 
vent and importunate prayer to the God of our sal- 

* Reflections on History, vol. i. p. 244, and 171 * 
N 6 



276 Commentary on Psalm evil. 

vation will procure, from above, knowledge to dis- 
pel our ignorance, and grace to help our infirmities ; 
the former will discover to us our road, the latter will 
enable us to walk in it, and both together will carry 
us in due time, to " the city of our eternal habi- 
tation." 

8. O that men would praise the Lord for his 
goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children 
of men ! 9. For he satisfieth the longing, or, thirsty, 
soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness. 

The former of these two verses is a chorus, re- 
peated after the celebration of each of the four mer- 
cies here related. Literally it is, " Let them acknow- 
ledge to Jehovah his mercy, and his wonders for 
the children of Adam." And what can better de- 
serve our acknowledgment, than the provision made 
for the bodies and souls of Christian travellers, in 
their way to that heavenly country and city, u where 
they shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more, 
neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat; 
for the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne 
shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living 
fountains of waters ; and God shall wipe away all 
tears from their eyes." Rev. vii. 16. 

10. Such as sit in darkness, and in the shadow of 
death, being bound in affliction and iron: 31. Be- 
cause they rebelled against the words of God, and 
contemned the counsel of the most High : 12. There- 
fore he brought down their heart with labour ; they 
fell down, and there was none to help. 13. Then 
they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he 
saved them out of their distresses. 14. He brought 
them out of darkness, and the shadow of death, and 
. brake their bands in sunder. 15. O that men would 
praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his won' 
derful works to the children of men ! 16. For he 
hath broken the gates of brass, and cut the bars of 
iron in sunder. 

In this second piece of divine scenery, we behold 



Commentary on Psalm cvn. 277 

a people groaning under all the miseries of captivity, 
deprived of light and liberty, chained down in horrid 
dungeons, and there expecting the day of execution. 
These calamities they are represented as having 
brought upon themselves by their rebellion against 
God, who takes this method of humbling them. It 
succeeds, and brings them upon their knees to Him 
who alone is able to deliver them. Moved by their 
cries, he exerts his power on their behalf, and frees 
them from the house of bondage. To a state of 
corporal servitude the Israelites, for their transgres- 
sions, were frequently reduced, and many times 
experienced, upon their repentance, the goodness of 
Jehovah in rescuing them from it. But the grand 
and universal captivity is that of sin and death ; the 
grand and universal deliverance, from which all the 
redeemed of the Lord ought to praise his mercy, 
is that by Jesus Christ. Adam and all his posterity 
" rebelled against the words of God, and contemned 
the counsel of the Most High." By so doing, they 
subjected themselves to a slavery the heaviest and 
bitterest of all others. The devil led them captive at 
his will, and set over them their own insatiable lusts 
and passions, as so many taskmasters, to afflict, and 
keep them under. By these the soul is confined so 
close in prison, and bound with so many chains, that 
it cannot get forth to do the will of God, even when 
that is made known to it. Of mankind in this state 
how truly may it be said, and how often in Scripture 
is it said, under these and the like figures, u They 
sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death, being 
fast bound in misery, and bands stronger than iron — 
He also brought down their heart through heaviness, 
they fell down, and there was none to help!" A 
sense of this his woeful condition forces the sinner to 
*' cry unto the Lord Jesus in his trouble/' and to 
say, " O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver 
me from this body of death !" " Bring my soul out 
of prison, that I may give thanks unto thy name." 



278 Commentary on Psalm evil. 

And now his prayer is beard, the grace of Christ 
cometh to his assistance, and he is made " free in- 
deed." His chains, like those of St. Peter, fall off 
at the word of his deliverer ; he is " saved out of his 
distress ;" f< he is brought out of darkness and the 
shadow of death," into the glorious light and liberty 
of the sons of God. The joy consequent upon such 
a deliverance will be exceeded only by that which 
shall take place in the hearts, and be expressed by 
the voices of the redeemed, on the day when Christ 
shall accomplish the redemption of their bodies also, 
as he hath already effected that of his own, from the 
power of the grave ; when he shall dash in pieces the 
brazen gates and adamantine bars of that prison- 
house, put an end for ever to the bondage of cor- 
ruption, and lead captivity captive in the highest 
heavens. 

17. Fools, because of their transgressions, and be- 
cause of their iniquities, are afflicted. 18. Their 
sozd abhorreth all manner of meat, and they dram 
near unto the gates of death. 19. Then they cry 
unto the Lord in their trouble, and he saveth them 
out of their distresses. 20. He sent his word and 
healed them, and delivered them from their destruc- 
tion. 21. O that men would praise the Lord for 
his goodness , and for his wonderful works to the 
children of men ! 22. And let them sacrifice the 
sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare his works with 
rejoicing. 

The recovery of men from sickness affords a third 
image of the benefits conferred on our nature, by 
the Redeemer. Sickness, as we are here informed, is 
the punishment of human folly and iniquity. When 
it is extreme, it deprives man of all relish and appe- 
tite for his food ; nay, it makes, him loathe and detest 
the very sight and smell of that which should nourish 
and support him ; in which case, he must waste 
away, and soon " draw near to the gates of death." 
But from those dreadful gates the power of God can 



Commentary on Psalm evil. 279 

snatch us when we are just about to enter them. To 
an infirm and emaciated body he can restore health, 
strength, and beauty; for diseases are his ministers 
and messengers ; they visit us at his command, and 
at his command they retire, and we recover again. 
The Israelites in the wilderness, " because of their 
transgressions, and because of their iniquities, were 
often afflicted" with a plague. But when they re- 
pented, and atonement Was made, the plague ceased. 
They were stung by fiery serpents ; but when they 
" cried unto Jehovah, he sent his word, and healed 
them." " They were troubled," as the author of the 
book of Wisdom observes, " for a small season, 
that they might be admonished, having a sign of 
salvation to put them in remembrance of the com- 
mandment of thy law. For he that turned himself 
towards it, was not saved by the thing that he saw, 
but by thee who art the Saviour of ail." Wisdom 
xvi. (3, 7. Sentence of death was passed upon 
Hezekiah; he already saw himself at " the gates of 
the grave," and expected no more to " behold man 
with the inhabitants of the world." Yet his prayer 
prevaileth for a respite, and fifteen years were added 
to his life, Tsa. xxxviii. Now the mind, by reason 
of sin, is not less subject to infirmities than the body. 
These infirmities reduce a man to a state of languor 
and listlessness; he finds himself incapable of action, 
indisposed for the reception of divine truths, without 
taste for knowledge, or inclination for virtue ; he 
even nauseates the book of God, and the bread of 
heaven ; and the life uf faith is in great danger. But 
the case is not desperate, while there is breath enough 
left to call in, by prayer, the great Physician of 
spirits. The most inveterate malady gives place to 
bis efficacious medicines ; appetite revives, health 
returns, and the believer is reinstated in the vigour 
and beauty of holiness. Let all avIio have been thus 
healed, and saved from destruction," either of 
body or soul, ' f acknowledge to Jehovah his mercy, 



280 Commentary on Psalm evil. 

and his wonders wrought for the children of Adam : 
let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and 
declare his works with rejoicing. " 

23. They that go down to the sea in ships, that 
do business in great waters: 24. These see the works 
of the Lord, and his wonders in the deep, 25. For 
he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which 
lifteth up the waves thereof. 26. They mount up 
to heaven, they go down again to the depths, their 
soul is melted because of trouble. 27. They reel to 
and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are 
at their wits end; Heb. all their ivisdom f or skill, is 
swallowed up. 28. Then they cry unto the Lord 
in their trouble, and he bring eth them out of their 
distresses. 29. He maketh the storm a calm, so 
that the waves thereof are still. 30. Then are they 
glad because they be quiet ; so he bringeth them unto 
their desired haven. 31. O that men wouldpraise 
the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful 
works to the children of men! 32. Let them exalt 
him also in the congregation of the people, and praise 
him in the assembly of the elders. 

The fourth similitude chosen to portray the dan- 
gers of our present state, and the goodness of God 
displayed in our salvation, is taken from that signal 
instance of the divine power and providence, the 
preservation of mariners in a storm at sea. The de- 
scription which the Psalmist hath given us of such 
an event admitteth of no comment. Experience 
alone can illustrate its beauty, evince its truth, and 
point out the propriety of the circumstances which 
are selected to furnish us with a full and complete 
idea of the whole. Few of us, indeed, are ever likely 
to be in that terrible situation. But then we can- 
not help reflecting, that there is a ship, in which we 
are all embarked ; there is a troubled sea, on which 
we all sail ; there are storms, by which we are all 
frequently overtaken ; and there is a haven, which we 
all desire to behold and to enter. For the church is 



/ 



Commentary on Psalm evil. 281 

a ship ; the world is a sea ; temptations, persecutions, 
and afflictions, are the waves of it ; the prince of the 
power of the air is the stormy wind which raises them; 
and heaven is the only port of rest and security. 
Often during the voyage, for our punishment, or our 
trial, God permitteth us to be thus assaulted. The 
succession and the violence of our trouble, the ele- 
vations and depressions of mind and fortune, the 
uncertainty of our counsels, and our utter inability 
to help ourselves, are finally represented by the mul- 
titude and impetuosity of the waves, the tossings and 
agitations of the vessel, the confusion, terror, and 
distress among the sailors. In both cases, prayer is 
the proper effect, and the only remedy left. With 
the earnestness of affrighted mariners, who will then 
be devout, though they never were so before, we 
should " cry unto the Lord Jesus in our trouble";" we 
should, as it were, " awake" him, like the disciples, 
with repetitions of " Lord, save us, we perish 1" 
Then will he arise, and rebuke the authors of our 
tribulation, saying unto them, <s Peace, be still f 
and they shall hear and obey his voice. " He will 
make the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof 
shall be still ;" and at length he will " bring us" 
in peace, joy, and gladness, " to our desired haven," 
there to " exalt him in the congregation" of his 
chosen, and " praise him in the" great " assembly" 
of saints and angels. This is the consummation so 
devoutly wished and requested by the church for all 
her children, at the time of their baptism, that they, 
" being delivered from God's wrath, may be received 
into the ark of Christ's church ; and, being stead- 
fast in faith, joyful through hope, and rooted in 
charity, may so pass the waves of this trouble- 
some world, that finally they may come to the 
land of everlasting life." Thus we see there is no 
spiritual evil, out of which God is not both able and 
willing to deliver us, when we call upon him. Are 
we ignorant of the way to the heavenly city ? He 



282 Commentary on Psalm evil. 

will guide and conduct us thither. Are we bound 
with the chains of sin and death I He will loose and 
deliver us. Are our minds diseased and languid I 
He will heal and invigorate them. Are we in dan- 
ger of being overwhelmed by the troubles of the 
world ? He will preserve us in the midst of them, 
until he bid them cease. Of his power and inclina- 
tion to do these things for our souls, he hath given 
assurance to all men, by these pledges of his love, 
the benefits and blessings conferred on the bodies of 
his people, in leading them through the wilderness 
to Canaan ; in rescuing them so often from the mi- 
series of captivity ; in healing their diseases ; and in 
saving those of them who did business in '* great 
waters," from the perils of the sea. Certainly the 
mind of man cannot have a nobler subject for medi- 
tation in this world, than the wonders of provi- 
dence, considered as representing the mercies of 
redemption. 

33. He turneth rivers into a wilderness, and the 
water springs into dry ground. 34. A fruitful land 
into barrenness, for the wickedness of them that 
dwell therein, 35. He turneth the wilderness into a 
standing water, and dry ground into water springs ; 
36. And there he maketh the hungry to dwell, that 
they may prepare a city for habitation; 37. And 
sow the fields and plant vineyards, which may yield 
fruits of increase. 38. He blesseth them also, so 
that they are multiplied greatly, and suffereth not 
their cattle to decrease. 

In this latter part cf the Psalm, the Prophet far- 
ther exemplitieth the power, the justice, and the 
goodness of God: his power, in being able to 
change the very nature of things; his justice and his 
goodness, in so doing, either to punish the rebellious, 
or to reward the obedient. A well-watered and fer- 
tile country shall, for the sins of its inhabitants, 
be converted into a dry and a barren one. The 
plain of Jordan, which, before the overthrow of 



Commentary on Psalm evil. 



283 



Sodom and Gomorrah, was well watered every 
where, " like the garden of Jehovah," Gen. xiii. 
10. hath, since that overthrow, been a land of salt 
and sulphur, and perpetual sterility. Nay, even the 
once fruitful Palestine itself, that flowed with milk 
and honey, is at this day a region of such utter de- 
solation, that the very possibility of its ever having 
sufficed to maintain the people who formerly possess- 
ed it, is now called in question. And, indeed, while 
the rain of heaven shall continue to be in the hand 
of God, how easy it is for him, by withholding it dur- 
ing a few months, to blast all the most promising- 
hopes of man; and, instead of plenty, joy, and 
health, to visit him with famine, pestilence, and 
death ! On the other hand, when the ways of a people 
please him, he can rid them of these dreadful 
guests ; the rain shall descend from above, the 
springs shall rise from beneath, the earth shall yield 
her increase, the cattle shall feed in large pastures, 
the seasons shall be kindly, the air salutary, and the 
smiling face of nature shall attest the loving kindness 
of the . Lord. Thus, in the dispensations of grace, 
hath he dealt with Jews and Gentiles. The syna- 
gogue of the former, once rich in faith, watered with 
the benedictions of heaven, fruitful in prophets and 
saints, adorned with the services of religion, and the 
presence of Jehovah, hath been, since the murder 
of the Son of God, cursed with infidelity, parched 
like the withered tops of the mountains of Gilboah, 
barren and desolate as the land of their ancient resi- 
dence, whose naked rocks seem to declare to all the 
world the hard-heartedness and unprofitableness of 
its old possessors. When the " fruitful field" thus 
became a " forest," the " wilderness" at the same 
time, became a " fruitful field." A church was 
planted in the Gentile world, and the " Spirit was 
poured out upon it from on high." In that " wilder- 
ness did waters break out, and streams in that de- 
sert." There was faith sown, and holiness was the 



284 Commentary on Psalm evil. 

universal product. " The wilderness and the soli- 
tary place was glad, and the desert rejoiced, and 
blossomed as the rose. It blossomed abundantly, 
and rejoiced even with joy and singing ; the glory of 
Lebanon was given unto it, the excellency of Carmel 
and Sharon;" the privileges and honours of the syna- 
gogue were conferred upon the church; and the 
nations now "saw the glory of Jehovah, and the ex- 
cellency of God;" Isa. xxxii. 15. xxxv. 1, 2. Spi- 
ritual increase, health, and plenty, spiritual peace, 
joy, and happiness, appeared in beauteous and lovely 
procession, and the blessing of Jesus was upon this 
his new inheritance in every way. 

39. Again they are minished and brought low, 
through oppression, affliction, and sorrow. 40. He 
poureth contempt upon princes, and causeth them to 
wander in the wilderness, where there is no way. 
41. Yet setteth he the poor on high from affliction, 
andmaketh him families like a flock. 

But let not those who have received the largest 
share of Heaven's favours therefore boast and pre- 
sume. The continuance of those favours dependeth 
upon the continuance of their fidelity and obedience. 
Mighty empires, with their " princes," have, for 
their wickedness, been " brought low" by the arm of 
Jehovah, and laid in the dust, while nations " poor" 
and feeble, and never thought of, have " been taken 
from thence, and exalted over them." What revo- 
lutions have, in like manner happened, and proba- 
bly are still to happen, in the church ! Jerusalem is 
fallen through unbelief ; and the Gentile church 
standeth only by faith, from which, if she depart, 
vengeance will be executed on her likewise. Yet, 
even in the worst of times, there is a promise that 
" the poor" in spirit, the faithful and humble dis- 
ciples of the holy Jesus, shall be preserved from 
the evil, and "set on high from affliction ;" yea, that 
they shall be multiplied " like a flock," under the 
care of the good Shepherd, to preserve his name, 



Commentary on Psalm cix. 285 

and to continue a church upon the earth, until he 
shall return again. 

42. The righteous shall see it, and rejoice ; and 
all iniquity shall slop her mouth. 

Two consequences will follow from this alternate 
display of the mercy and the judgment of God. The 
righteous, finding themselves still the objects of the 
former, will have cause to rejoice and give thanks ; 
and the wicked, when visited with the latter, will 
be forced, by their silence at least, to own that their 
punishment is just. This will certainly be the case 
at the last day, when the dispensations of God, and 
the perfect rule of equity observed in them, shall be 
manifested to all the world. 

43. Whoso is wise, and will observe these things, 
even they shall understand the loving kindness of the 
Lord ; or, who is wise ? and he will observe these 
things ; and they shall understand the loving kind' 
ness of the Lord. 

A truly " wise" person will treasure up in his 
heart the contents of this most instructive and de- 
lightful Psalm. By so doing, he will fully " under- 
stand'' and comprehend the weakness and wretched- 
ness of man, and the power and " loving kindness" of 
God, who, not for our merit, but for his mercy's sake, 
dispelleth our ignorance, breaketh off our sins, heal- 
eth our infirmities, preserveth us in temptations, 
placeth us in his church, enricheth us with his grace, 
sheltereth us from persecution, blesseth us in time, 
and will crown us in eternity. 



PSALM CIX. 

ARGUMENT. 

St. Peter, Acts i. 20. hath taught us to apply the 
predictions in this Psalm to the betrayers and 
3 



286 Commentary on Psalm cix. 



murderers of Messiah, who is, consequently, the 
person here speaking, and ] — 5. complaining of 
the injuries which he suffered from them ; after 
which, 6—20. he forewarneth them of all the 
judgments and sore calamities that should com 
upon them and their posterity ; 21 — 25. he return- 
eth to the subject of his passion ; 26 — 29. repeat- 
eth his supplications for himself and his church ; 
and 30, 31. concludeth with an act of praise. — In 
this light was the Psalm considered and interpreted 
in the ancient church, by Chrysostom, Jerome, 
Augustin, Theodoret, and others. 

1. Hold not thy peace, O God of my praise, i. e. 
who art the subject of my praise. 2. For the mouth 
of the wicked, and the mouth of the deceilful are 
opened against me : they have spoken against me 
with a lying tongue. 3. They compassed me about 
also with icords of hatred : and fought against me 
without a cause. 4. For my love, they are my ad- 
versaries ; but I give myself unto prayer. And 
they have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for 
my love. 

The holy Jesus, in these words, maketh supplica- 
tion to the Father for redress and deliverance. He 
complaineth of the manner in which he was treated, 
when " he came unto his own, and his own received 
him not:" John i. 11. Sometimes " the mouth of 
the wicked was opened upon him*," roaring against 
him, like the roaring of lions, while they cried out, 
" He is a Samaritan and hath a devil, and is mad ; 
away with him, away with him\ crucify him, crucify 
him." Sometimes, " deceitful and lying tongues" 
were employed, either to entangle and entrap him in 

* Haec autem cecinit David spirituali sensu in persona 
Chrisli a Judaeis impethi omnimodis blasphemiis. Bossuet. 



Commentary on Psalm (JiX. 287 

bis talk, or to bear false witness against him. And 
all this was done, not only e< without a cause/' but 
men were bis bitter and implacable ■ * adversaries," 
in return for that **■ love" which brought him from 
heaven, to save them with an everlasting salvation. 
Let the afflicted and traduced disciple rejoice, in 
that he is conformed to the image of his Master. 
And from the example of that Master let him learn 
what course to take, when in such circumstances — 
" But T give myself unto prayer." 

6. * Thou wilt set a wicked man, or, the wicked one 
over him, and Satan shall stand at his right hand. 
7. When he is judged he shall be condemned, and his 
prayer shall become sin. 

A transition is here made to the adversaries of 
Messiah; primarily to Judas, " who was guide to 
them that took Jesus," Acts i. 16 ; secondarily, to 
the synagogue, of whom Judas may be considered 
as an epitome and representative. It is foretold, that 
by betraying and murdering the best of masters, they 
should subject themselves to the tyranny of the 
worst; that they should become slaves to the "wicked 
one," who should justly be " set over them," when 
they had delivered themselves into his hands : that 
" Satan," who had stood by them to tempt them, 
should " stand at their right hand" to accuse them 
at the tribunal of God; that when tried, they would 
be convicted and u condemned," and even their 
" prayer" would be abomination in the sight of the 
Lord, as being offered without true contrition and 
repentance, without faith, hope, or charity. Such 
is the wretched state of the Jews, estranged from 

* As most of the following verbs are in the future tense, 
and the rest have evidently a predictive and future import, 
the same liberty is here taken, as in Ps. lxix. of rendering 
them throughout uniformly in that tense: by which means 
the curses pronounced in this Psalm will at once appear to be 
of the same import with those in the xxviiith chapter of Deu- 
teronomy. The reader is entreated, when he shall have pe- 
rused the Psalm, to turn to that chapter and judge for himself. 



288 Commentary on Psalm cix. 

God, and in bondage to the devil; such the prayers, 
which, from hardened and malignant hearts, they 
continually utter, for the excision of all Christians, 
and for the extirpation of that blessed Name, on 
which Christians call. These prayers, instead of 
lightening the burden of their sins, certainly add to 
its weight. Enable us, O Lord Jesus, to resist Sa- 
tan as a tempter, that he may not be our accuser ; 
and grant us always so to pray, that our prayers may 
be heard. 

8. His days shall he few ; and another shall take 
his office. 

This is the verse which St. Peter hath cited and 
applied in his discourse to the disciples, at the elec- 
tion of Matthias into the place of Judas. " Men and 
brethren, this scripture must needs have been ful- 
filled, which the Holy Ghost, by the mouth of David, 
spake before concerning Judas, who was guide to 
them that took Jesus. For he was numbered with 
us, and had obtained part of this ministry. Now this 
man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity, 
and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, 
and all his bowels gushed out — For it is written in 
the book of Psalms, " Let his habitation be desolate, 
and let no man dwell therein : and, his bishopric let 
another take." The former of these two citations is 
made from Psalm lxix.25. the latter is a part of the 
verse now before us. If Judas, therefore, be the 
person whose destruction the sufferer foretelleth, 
the person speaking in this prophetical Psalm must 
of necessity be our Lord himself, who suffered by the 
treachery of Judas. In Ps. lxix. 25. the prediction 
is in the plural number, " Their habitation shall be 
void yet St. Peter applies it, in the singular num- 
ber, to Judas. The passage in our Psalm is singu- 
lar, yet applicable not to Judas only, but to the whole 
nation of the Jews ; whose " days," after they had 
crucified the Lord of glory, " were few;" who were 
dispossessed of the place and " office" which they 



Commentary on Psalm cix. 289 

held as the church of God, and to which, with all its 
honours and privileges, the Gentile Christian church 
succeeded in their stead, when the Aaronical priest- 
hood was abolished, and that of the true Melchize- 
dek established for ever. 

9. His children shall he fatherless, and his wife a 
widow. 10. His children shall be continually vaga- 
bonds, and beg; they shall seek their bread also out 
of their desolate places. 

If, by the wretched death of Judas, his wife be- 
came a widow, and his children orphans, vagabonds, 
and beggars, their fate was but a prelude to that of 
thousands and ten thousands of the same nation, 
whose husbands and fathers came afterwards to a 
miserable end, at the destruction of Jerusalem. 
Their children, and children's children, have since 
been " continually vagabonds" upon the earth, in 
the state of Cain, when he had murdered his righte- 
ous brother, not cut off, but marvellously preserved 
for punishment and woe. Having nothing of their 
own, they roam through all parts of the world, civi- 
lized or barbarous, the scorn and contempt of man- 
kind. And even if they are able to amass wealth, 
their unparalleled avarice still keeps them poor and 
beggarly in the midst of it. Thus Dr. Hammond, 
in his Annotation on these verses — " By this is de- 
scribed, in a very lively manner, the condition of the 
Jewish posterity, ever since their ancestors fell under 
that signal vengeance, for the crucifying of Christ. 
First, their desolations and vastations in their own 
country, and being ejected thence ; secondly, their 
continual wanderings from place to place, scattered 
over the face of the earth ; and, thirdly, their remark- 
able covetousness, keeping them always poor and 
beggarly, be they never so rich, and continually la- 
bouring and moiling for gain, as the poorest are 
wont to do ; and this is continually the constant 
, curse attending this people wheresoever they are 
scattered." 

O 



290 Commentary on Psalm cix. 



11. The extortioner, or, creditor, shall catch, or 
seize all that he hath : and the stranger shall spoil 
his labour. 12. There shall be none to extend mercy 
to him ; neither shall there be any to favour his 
fatherless children. 

Since the destruction of Jerusalem, how often 
hath this race been seized, pillaged, stripped, and 
impoverished by prince and people, in all the 
nations of the known world ; none appearing, as in 
other cases, to " favour and extend mercy" to 
them* \ " They have had no nation, none to avenge 
their grievous wrong, which the Lord God of their 
forefathers had ordained they should suffer, at all 
times, and in all places, wheresoever they have 
come, without redress. Nay, their general carriage 
hath been so odious and preposterous, that, albeit 
the Christian magistrates had conspired together for 
their good, they would themselves have certainly 
provoked their own misery." Thus that excellent 
divine, the learned and pious Dr. Jackson, vol. i. 
p. 142. and 135. ; whose reflections upon the history 
of the Jews, at and since their dispersion, it were 
to be wished that every Christian could peruse. 
For as he himself observes, " Christan parents, 
whether bodily or spiritual, should be as careful to 
instruct their children what the Lord hath done to 
these Jews, as the Israelites should have been to tell 
their sons what God had done to Pharaoh." Ibid, 
p. 152. 

13. His posterity shall be cut off, and in the ge- 
neration following, their name shall be blotted out. 
14. The iniquity of his fathers shall be remembered 
-with the Lord, and the sin of his mother shall not 
he blotted out, 15. They shall be before the Lord 

* Thou shalt be only oppressed and spoiled evermore, and, 
no man shall save thee — The fruit of thy land, and all thy 
labours, shall a nation which thou knowest not, eat up ; and 
thou shalt be only oppressed and crushed alway, Deut. 
xxviii. 29. 33. 



Commentary on Psalm cix. 291 

continually, that he may cut off the memory of them 
from the earth. 

The traitorous and rebellious " posterity" of 
traitorous and rebellious parents, suffered an " exci- 
sion" by the Roman sword, and " in the genera- 
tion following their name," as a church and civil 
polity, was " blotted out" of the list of states and 
kingdoms upon earth. 6t The iniquity of their 
fathers," which they had filled up, 44 was remember- 
ed with Jehovah, and the sin of their mother," that 
is, perhaps, of the synagogue of Jerusalem, now in 
bondage with her children, " was not blotted out ; 
that upon them might come all the righteous blood 
shed, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the 
blood of Zacharias, whom they slew between the 
temple and the altar." Matt, xxiii. 35. The blood 
of the prophets cried for vengeance against those 
who crucified the Lord of the prophets. God hid not 
his face any longer from all these horrible transgres- 
sions, but <4 they were before him continually," and 
occasioned him to " cut off the memory" of his peo- 
ple, once precious and fragrant, " from the earth ;" 
so that while apostles and martyrs are annually com- 
memorated with honour, and their good deeds, blos- 
soming out of the dust, perfume the church, and de- 
light the souls of the faithful, the names of " Judas," 
and " Jew/' are never mentioned but with contempt 
and abhorrence. 

16. Because that he remembered not to show mer- 
cy ; but persecuted the poor and needy man, that he 
might even slay the broken in heart. 

The crime which brought upon its perpetators 
all the above mentioned judgments and calamities, 
is here pointed out too plainly to be mistaken. They 
" remembered not to shew mercy" to him, who 
showed it to all the world ; they " persecuted" him 
who for our sakes became " poor," and who conde- 
scended to ask of his creatures water to drink ; they 
betrayed and murdered the lowly and afflicted Jesus, 



292 Commentary on Psalm cix. 

whose " heart" was " broken" with sorrow for their 
sins, and with a sense of the punishment due to 
thein. How long will it be, ere the brethren of this 
most innocent and most injured Joseph, " say one 
to another, We are verily guilty concerning our 
brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul, 
when he besought us, and we would not hear : 
therefore is this distress come upon us !" Gen. 
xlii. 21. 

17. As he loved cursing, so shall it come unto him : 
as he delighted not inblessing, so shall it be far from 
him. 18. As he clothed himself with cursing, like 
as with his garment, so shall it come into his bowels 
like water, and like oil into his bones. 19. It shall 
be unto him as the garment which covereth him. and 
for a girdle wherewith he is girded continually. 20. 
This shall be the reward of mine adversaries from 
the Lord, and of them that speak evil agauist my 
soul. 

They who reject Christ, reject the fountain of 
" blessing," and choose a " curse" for their portion ; 
and this portion, when they have finally made their 
choiqe, will certainly be given to them in full mea- 
sure. The curse that lighted on the Jewish nation, 
is resembled, for its universality and adhesion, to a 
" garment" which covereth the whole man, and is 
i( girded" close about his loins ; for its diffusive and 
penetrating nature, to " water," which, from the 
stomach, passeth into the "bowels," and is dispersed 
through all the vessels of the frame ; and to " oil," 
which imperceptibly insinuates itself into the very 
" bones." When that unhappy multitude, assem- 
bled before Pontius Pilate, pronounced the words, 
" His blood be on us, and on our children," Matt, 
xxvii. 25. then did they put on the envenomed gar- 
ment, which has stuck to and tormented the nation 
ever since ; then did they eagerly swallow down that 
deadly draught, the effects whereof have been the 
infatuation and misery of 1700 years ! If such, in 



Commentary on Psalm cix. 293 

this world, be " the reward of Messiah's adversaries, 
and of those who spake evil against him/' what 
will hereafter be the vengeance inflicted on those 
who " crucify him afresh, and put him again to an 
open shame V Heb„ vi. 6. And what will be the 
operation of the sentence, " Go, ye cursed," upon 
the bodies and souls of the wicked ? how will it at 
once affect all the senses of the former, and all the 
faculties of the latter, with pain, anguish, horror, 
and despair ! Think on these things, ye sinners ; 
tremble and repent! 

21. But do thou for me, O God the Lord, Heb. 
Jehovah the Lord, for thy names sake : because 
thy mercy is good, deliver thou me. 22. For I am 
poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me; 
23. J am gone like the shadow when it declineth : I 
am tossed up and down as the locust. 24. My knees 
are weak through fasting, and my flesh faileth of 
fatness. 25, 1 became also a reproach unto them : 
when they looked upon me they shaked their heads. 

In this last part of the Psalm, Messiah petitioneth 
for deliverance, urging to the Father his power as 
" Lord," the honour of his " name," and the great- 
ness of his <f mercy." He then pleadeth his own 
humiliation and affliction, his " poverty" and 
" heart"-felt agony of grief. Drawing towards the 
evening of his mortal life, he compareth himself to a 
" shadow, declining," and about to vanish from the 
earth, where he hath no rest, being persecuted from 
place to place, as a " locust" is driven hither and 
thither by the stormy wind and tempest ; while en- 
feebled and emaciated by frequent " fastings," and 
long want of food during his passion, he was ready 
to sink under his burden ; and what aggravated all 
his sufferings, was, that he met with no pity and 
compassion from those around him ; his enemies 
" reproached" and " reviled him, shaking their 
heads, and saying, Ah ! thou thatdestroyest the tem- 
ple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself," &c. 



294 Commentary on Psalm CIX. 

Mark xv. 29. Nor are we to suppose our Lord 
thus praying for his natural body only, but also for 
his mystical body, the church, that from all distresses, 
persecutions, and insults, the members of that body- 
may in time be delivered, like their blessed head, by 
a joyful resurrection to eternal life. 

26. Help me, O Lord my God; O save me, ac- 
cording to thy mercy* 27. That they may know 
that this is thy hand; that thou Lord hast done it. 

The resurrection of Christ was to be the great de- 
monstration of Jehovah's power ; and it was pub- 
lished as such by the apostles to all the nations of the 
world, who thereupon believed, and were converted. 
The Jews alone hardened their hearts against that 
proof, and continued impenitent. 

28. They will curse, but thou shalt bless : when 
they arise, they shall be ashamed ; but thy servant 
shall rejoice. 29. Mine adversaries shall be clothed 
with shame : and they shall cover themselves with 
their own confusion as with a mantle. 

The apostate sons of Israel, though they have 
been so long " confounded" and blasted by the 
breath of Heaven's displeasure, yet continue " curs- 
ing" and blaspheming, as it is here foretold that 
they should do. But God hath " blessed," his Son 
Jesus, and through him all nations, who have been 
adopted into his family, and made his children by 
baptism ; yea, and they shall be blessed, and enter, 
by thousands and millions, into the " joy" of their 
Lord, in that day when his crucifiers shall have no 
" covering" but their own e * shame" and con- 
fusion." 

30. 1 will greatly praise the Lord with my mouth : 
yea I will praise him among the multitude. 31. For 
he shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save 
him from those that condemn his soul. 

The former of these two verses is parallel to that 
which St. Paul citeth from Ps. xxii. 22. " He that 
sanctifieth, and they who are sanctified, are all of 



Commentary on Psalm ex. 295 

one : for which cause he is not ashamed to call them 
brethren, saying, I will declare thy name unto my 
brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praises 
unto thee;" Heb. ii. 11. Great is the joy of the 
redeemed upon earth ; greater will it be, after the 
resurrection of the dead, in the courts of heaven. 
Jesus, unjustly put to death, and now risen again, is 
a perpetual advocate and intercessor for his people, 
ever ready to appear on their behalf against the ini- 
quitous sentence of a corrupt world, and the malice 
of the grand accuser. 



PSALM CX. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Christmas- day . 

ARGUMENT. 

In this Psalm David prophesieth concerning, 1. the 
exaltation of Christ ; 2. the sceptre of his king- 
dom ; 8. the character of his subjects ; 4. his 
everlasting priesthood ; 5, 6. his tremendous vic- 
tories and judgments ; 7. the means of his obtain- 
ing both kingdom and priesthood, by his suffer- 
ings and resurrection. Parts of this prophecy are 
cited and applied in the New Testament, by our 
Lord himself, Matt. xxii. 43. by St. Peter, Acts 
ii. 34. by St. Paul, I Cor. xv. 25. Heb. v. 6. 
The church, likewise hath appointed it as one of 
the Proper Psalms to be read on Christmas-day. 
It appertaineth literally and solely to king Mes- 
siah. 

o 4 



296 Commentary on Psalm ex. 

1 . The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my 
right hand, until I make thine enemies, thy foot* 
stooh 

We are here informed of Jehovah's eternal and 
unchangeable decree concerning the kingdom of 
Messiah, its extension, power and duration. That 
Messiah should, after his sufferings, be thus exalted, 
was determined in the divine counsel and covenant, 
before the world began. Whether we suppose the 
Psalmist to be speaking of that determination, or of 
its actual accomplishment at the time of Christ's as- 
cension into heaven, it maketh no great difference. 
The substance of the decree is the same. It was 
addressed by the Father to the Son, by Jehovah to 
Messiah, whom David in spirit styleth, \ntf> " my 
Lord one that should come after him, as his off- 
spring according to the flesh ; but one, in dignity of 
person and greatness of power, far superior to him, 
and to every earthly potentate ; King of kings, and 
Lord of lords ; God and man united in one person. 
To this person it was said by the Father, " Sit thou 
at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy 
footstool ;" in other words, Seeing, O my Son Mes- 
siah, thou hast glorified me on the earth, and finished 
the work which I gave thee to do, the great work of 
man's redemption ; take now the throne prepared for 
thee from the foundation of the world ; behold, all 
power is given unto thee; enter upon thy mediatorial 
kingdom, and reign till every opposer shall have sub- 
mitted himself to thee, and sin and death shall have 
felt thy all- conquering arm. 

2. The Lord shall send the rod of thy strength 
out of Sion : rule thou in the midst of thine enemies. 

In the foregoing verse, David related the words 
spoken by the Father to the Son. In this, he him- 
self, as a prophet, directeth his speech to King 
Messiah, predicting the glorious consequences of his 
enthronization, and the manner in which " his ene* 



Commentary on Psalm ex. 297 

raies" are to be <£ made his footstool." The " rod," 
or sceptre of Christ's " strength" is his word, accom- 
panied by his Spirit. The law was given to Israel 
from Sinai, but the Gospel went forth from " Sion 
it was " preached to all nations, beginning at Jeru- 
salem, " Luke xxiv. 47. ; there began the spiritual 
kingdom of Jesus ; there were the first converts 
made ; and from thence the faith was propagated by 
the apostles, to the end of the earth. This David 
seeing before-hand, cries out, " Rule thou in the 
midst of thine enemies !" Go on, victorious Prince ; 
plant the standard of thy cross among the thickest 
ranks of the adversary ; and, in opposition to both 
Jew and Gentile tumultuously raging against thee, 
erect and establish thy church throughout the world ! 
This was accordingly done with marvellous speed 
and success ; and the church thus erected and esta- 
blished among the nations, hath been as marvellously 
preserved, " in the midst of her enemies," unto this 
day; yea, and the world shall sooner be destroyed, 
than she shall cease to be preserved. 

3. Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy 
power , in the beauties of holiness : from the womb of 
the morning thou hast the dew of thy youth. 

The blessed effects of the Gospel, upon its publi- 
cation, are here foretold. " The people" of Christ 
are those given him by his Father, and gathered to 
him by the preachers of his word. " The day of his 
power" is the season of their conversion, when the 
corruptions of nature can no longer hold out against 
the prevailing influences of grace ; when the heart, 
will, and affections, turn from the world to God; 
and they make, as the first disciples did, a free and 
voluntary offer of themselves, and all they have, to 
their Redeemer. Then it is that they appear " in 
the beauties of holiness," adorned with humility, faith, 
hope, love, and all the graces of the Spirit. With 
regard to the last clause of this verse, bishop Lowtb, 



^98 Commentary on Psalm ex. 

inliis admired Lectures*, has observed, and proved, 
that it may be fairly construed to this effect ; — 
" More than the dew from the womb of the morning 
is the dew of thy progeny ;" that is, Thy children, 
begotten to thee through the Gospel, shall exceed iu 
number, as well as brightness and beauty, the 
spangles of early dew, which the morning discloseth 
to the delighted eye of the beholder. The whdle 
verse, therefore, containeth a lively character of the 
subjects of Christ's spiritual kingdom, who are de- 
scribed by their relation to him as "his people;" 
by their ' ' willingness" to obey and serve him ; by 
their honourable attire, the rich and splendid robes 
of " holiness and by their multitudes, resembling 
the drops of " dew" upon the grass. 

4. The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent. 
Thou met a priest for ever after the order of Mel- 
chizedek. 

From Christ's regal office, and the administration 
thereof by the sceptre of his word and Spirit, the 
Prophet passeth to his sacerdotal office, which was 
also conferred on him by the decree of the Father, 
and that decree, as we are told, ratified by an oath ; 
"Jehovah hath sworn, and will not repent," or 
change his purpose. The oath of God was the 
great seal of heaven, designed to intimate the im- 
portance of the deed to which it was set, and " to 
show to the heirs of promise the immutability of his 
counsel :" Heb. vi. 17. Whether this oath passed 
at the actual consecration of Messiah to the priest- 
hood upon his ascension, or at his designation thereto 
by covenant before the world, sufficient it is for our 
assurance and comfort, that it did pass. We have 
a Priest in heaven, who standeth continually plead- 
ing the merits of his sacrifice once offered upon the 
cross : " who ever liveth to make intercession for 

* Praelect. Xo 



Commentary on Psalm ex. 299 

us ; and who is ready, at all times, to bless us, by 
turning away every man from his iniquities," Acts 
iii. 26. ; by aiding us against our enemies, and sup- 
porting us under our necessities. Oblation, inter- 
cession, and benediction, are the three branches of 
the sacerdotal office, which our great High Priest 
now exerciseth for us, and in the exercise of which 
the Father hath condescended in the most awful 
manner to promise, that he will hear and accept him 
on our behalf. His priesthood is not, like that of 
Aaron, figurative, successive, and transient, but real 
and effectual, fixed and incommunicable, eternal and 
unchangeable, according to that pattern of it exhi- 
bited to Abraham, before the law, in the person of 
Melchizedek, Gen. xiv. 18 — 20. and discoursed upon 
at large by the apostle, Heb. vii. throughout. 

5. The Lord upon thy right hand shall strike 
through kings in the day of his wrath. 6. He shall 
judge among the heathen, he shall Jill the places with 
the dead bodies ; he shall wound the heads over many 
countries ; Heb, the head over much country. 

This is a description of the vengeance which King 
Messiah should take on his impenitent adversaries. 
By "The Lord, or, my Lord, upon thy right 
hand," 70D^ b$ "Tift, the same person must undoubt j 
edly be understood, who is mentioned in the first 
verse under the same title, \TfN, as " sitting at the 
right hand of Jehovah." And the Psalmist, who 
has hitherto addressed himself to Messiah, or the 
Son, must be supposed now to make a sudden apo- 
strophe to Jehovah, or the Father; as if he had said, 
" This my Lord Messiah, who sitteth at thy right 
hand, O Jehovah, shall smite through kings in the 
day of his wrath ;" the kings of the earth will endea- 
vour to destroy his religion, and put an end to his 
kingdom; the Neros, the Domitians, the Dioclesians, 
the Maxentiuses,the Julians, &c. &c. shall stand up, 
and set themselves in array against him ; but " the 
Lamb shall overcome them ;" he shall "judge" and 
06 



300 Commentary on Psalm ex. 



punish the " Heathen" princes, with their people, 
when in arms against his church ; he shall raise up 
those who shall successfully fight his battles, and 
strew the ground with their f carcasses." As Mes- 
siah hath done to the antichristian powers of old, so 
shall he do to all others, before or at his second 
advent. There is a day of forbearance, during 
which he will have his church to be, like himself, 
oppressed and afflicted, humble and resigned ; but 
there is also a future day of wrath and recompense, 
when the sins and provocations of her persecutors 
shall be ripe for judgment; when their triumphs and 
her sufferings shall be at an end ; when they shall 
fall for ever, and she shall ascend to heaven. 

7. He shall drink of the brook, or, torrent, in the 
way ; and therefore shall he lift up his head. 

The means, by which Christ should obtain his 
universal kingdom, and everlasting priesthood, seem 
here to be assigned. In his " way" to glory, he was 
to drink deep of the waters of affliction * ; the 
swollen " torrent' - occurred in the way, and pre 

* The Hebrew word ^J"0 signifies, in general, " a current of 
water," which may be either a turbid, overwhelming, " tor- 
rent," or a clear and gentle " stream." In Psalm xviii. 4. it 
denotes the "floods of ungodliness." In Psalm xxxvi. 8. it 
is used to signify the "river of divine pleasures." Hence 
arises an ambignity in the interpretation of the words, " He 
shall drink of the brook in the way," which may be expounded 
cither of the sufferings Christ tasted, or the refreshments he 
experienced; as the "waters" are supposed to be those of 
" affliction," or those of " comfort. 1 ' Either way the sense is 
good and true, as it relates to Messiah. "Torrents," or the 
" overflowing of rivers," in the Scripture language, certainly, 
as Dr. Dm ell observes, do often denote " afflictions ;" as in 
Psalm xviii. 4. exxiv. 4, 5. cxliv. 7. &c. " the being oppressed 
by them," is also described by the action of " drinking." 
Psalm Ix. 3. lxxv. 8. &c. And the idea of a "brook in the 
way," or the road, seems to favour this exposition. But the 
author advances it, as becomes liim to do, with great defer- 
ence and submission, since Bishop Lowth and Mr. Merrick 
are of a different opinion. 



Commentary on Psalm CXI. 301 

sented itself between him and the throne of God. 
To this " torrent in the way" the Saviour descended ; 
he bowed himself down, and " drank" of it for us 
all; "and therefore, ttlby, did he lift up his 
head that is, he arose victorious, and, from the 
valley in which the torrent ran, ascended to the sum- 
mit of that holy and heavenly mount, where he rejgn- 
eth, till " his enemies be made his footstool." St. 
Paul hath expressed the same sentiment in literal 
terms ; " He humbled himself, and became obedient 
unto death, even the death of the cross : WHERE- 
FORE, £10, God, also hath highly exalted him." 
Phil. ii. 8. 



PSALM CXI. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Easter-day. 

ARGUMENT. 

This is one of the Proper Psalms appointed by the 
church to be read on Easter-day. It containeth, 
1. a resolution to praise Jehovah in the congrega- 
tion, 2, 3. for his great and glorious works, and, 
4. for the appointed memorials of them : 5, 6. 
his mercies to the church are celebrated, and, 
7, 8. the equity and the stability of his counsels 
declared ; 9. the blessings of redemption, and the 
new covenant, are mentioned, as they were pre- 
figured of old in God's dispensations towards 
Israel. 10. Religion is proclaimed to be true 
wisdom. 

1. I will praise the Lord, with my whole heart, 
in the assembly of the upright, and in the congre- 
gation. 



1 



302 Commentary on Psalm cxi. 

Jehovah is to be " praised," not only with the 
voice and the understanding, but with the " heart," 
with the <( whole" heart, and all its affections tuned, 
like the chords of the son of Jesse's harp, to a song 
of gratitude and love. Solitary devotion hath, doubt- 
less, its beauties and excellencies ; but how glorious 
is it to hear the voices of a whole Christian " con- 
gregation" break forth into hallelujahs, like the sound 
of many waters, and the noise of mighty thunderings, 
while each one, as it were, provokes another to con- 
tinue the blessed employment, with unremitted atten- 
tion, and unabated fervour ! 

2. The works of the Lord are great, sought out 
of all them that have pleasure therein. 

The subjects of man's praise are the " works" of 
God. Every one of these works, whether in the na- 
tural or the spiritual system, is " great." Nothing 
cometh from the hands of the divine Artist, but what 
is excellent and perfect in its kind, adapted with in- 
finite skill to its proper place, and fitted for its in- 
tended use. Happy are they, who with humility and 
diligence, with faith and devotion, give themselves 
to the contemplation of these works, and take " plea- 
sure," and delight therein. To them shall the gate 
of true science open ; they shall understand the mys- 
teries of creation, providence, and redemption ; and 
they who thus " seek," shall find the treasures of 
eternal wisdom. 

3. His work is honourable and glorious : and his 
righteousness endureth for ever. 

The " work," of all others, in which the "honour 
and glorious majesty" of Jehovah appeared, and 
which the Christian church celebrates with this 
Psalm, is the salvation and exaltation of our na- 
ture, by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the 
dead; an event which contained in it the accom- 
plishment of the ancient promises, and thereby de- 
monstrated to all the world the everlasting truth, 



Commentary on Psalm CXI. 308 

fidelity, and " righteousness," of him who made 
them. 

4. He hath made his wonderful works to be re- 
membered: or, he hath appointed a memorial for his 
wonders : the Lord is gracious and full of com- 
passion. 

Jewish feasts were " memorials" of the " wonders" 
wrought for Israel of old; Christian festivals are 
" memorials" of the " wonders" wrought in Christ 
for all mankind, to whom, no less than to Israel, God 
hath now showed himself" gracious and full of com- 
passion." 

5. He hath given meat unto them that fear him ; 
he will ever be mindful of his covenant, 6. He hath 
showed his people the power of his works, that he 
may, or, might, give them the heritage of the hea- 
then. 

Agreeably to the ( J covenant" which God made 
with Abraham, as concerning his children according 
to the flesh, he ( ' fed" and supported them in the - 
wilderness, he overthrew their enemies by the might 
of his "power," and he put them in possession of 
Canaan, which before was " the heritage of the Hea- 
then." Agreeably to the covenant which God made 
with the same Abraham, as concerning all believers, 
those " children of the promise which are counted 
for the seed," he feedeth them in the world with the 
true manna*, the bread which cometh down from 
heaven; he hath again "shewed the power of his 
works" in the overthrow of idolatry ; and again, by 
the conversion of the nations, given to his church 
" the heritage of the Heathen ;" although, like Israel, 
she is commanded, and hath had frequent admoni- 
tions, not to fix her heart on an earthly Canaan ; not 

* " Escam dedit" — Manna : quas csetera Dei mirabilia in 
memoriam revocabat: unde in Area servari jussa. Exod. 
xvi. 32. Erat autem Eucharistias figura, quae vere divini 
amoris monumentum seternum. Bossuet. 



304 Commentary on Psalm CXI. 

to expect any permanent habitation, any enduring 
city here below ; not to stop short of an eternal and 
heavenly rest. 

7. The works of his hands are verity and judg- 
ment ; all his commandments are sure. 8. They 
standfast for ever and ever, and are done in truth 
and uprightness. 

In all God's dispensations towards his faithful ser- 
vants, and towards his impenitent adversaries, we 
admire and adore his u verity" in the performance 
of his promises to the former, and his "justice" in 
executing his vengeance on the latter. Thus the 
lime of fulfilling his promise to Abraham came not 
till the iniquity of the Amorites was full. The case 
is the same as to the coming of Christ, the subver- 
sion of Paganism, the deaths of persecutors, the rise 
and fall of nations, the conversion or excision of in- 
dividuals, and every other instance of mercy or judg- 
ment. Another property of God's works is, that, 
being " done in truth and uprightness, they stand fast 
for ever and will then appear in perfect glory and 
beauty, when all the arts and labours of man shall be 
no more. 

9. He sent redemption unto his people, he hath 
commanded his covenant for ever : holy and reve- 
rend, or, terrible, is his name. 

He who " sent redemption" to Israel by the hand 
of Moses, hath now " sent redemption" by the power 
of Jesus to all the world : he who, at mount Sinai, 
established his "covenant" with his people, and gave 
them a law, hath now established his " covenant" 
with the Gentiles, and published to them his Gospel 
from Sion. " Holy is his name," and therefore 
"terrible" to those who, under all the means of grace, 
continue unholy. 

10. The fear of the Lord, is the beginning of wis- 
dom : a good understanding have all they that do his 
commandments : his praise endureth for ever. 

The " fear of God" is the first step to salvation, 



Commentary on Psalm cxui. 305 

as it exciteth a sinner to depart from evil, and to do 
good ; to implore pardon, and to sue for grace ; to 
apply to a Saviour for the one, and to a Sanctifier 
for the other. Religion is the perfection of wisdom, 
practice the best instructor, and thanksgiving i\\e 
sweetest recreation. 



PSALM CXIII. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
EasterDay. 

ARGUMENT. 

The servants of God are, 1. exhorted to praise his 
name, 2. at all times, and, 3, in all places, on ac- 
count, 4, 5. of his power and glory, 6 — 8. of his 
mercy in redeeming man, and, 9. making the Gen- 
tile church to be a joyful mother of children. This 
Psalm is appointed to be read on Easter-day. 

1. Praise, O ye servants of the Lord, praise the 
name of the Lord. 2. Blessed be the name of the 
Lord, from this time forth, and for evermore. 

Christians are the "servants" of Jesus Christ; 
and a most delightful part of their service it is, to 
" praise" his holy and saving "name" in the church, 
which now usetli this Psalm among others, and with 
it " blesseth the name" of her Lord and Saviour, 
from age to age. The Psalmist wished and prayed 
that this might be done, and he foresaw that it would 
be done, while the world should last, upon earth, and 
afterwards " for evermore" in heaven. 

3. From the rising of the sun unto the going down 
of the same, the Lord's name is to be praised ; or, 
is praised. 4. The Lord is high above all nations^ 
and his glory above the heavens. 



306 Commentary on Psalm cxiii. 

At the diffusion of the Gospel through the world, 
the name of Christ was praised " from the east to 
the west," in churches every where planted by the 
apostles and their successors : and the grand sub- 
jects of joy and triumph among believers were, the 
superiority of their Master over the H Heathen na- 
tions" and their idols ; the exaltation of " his glory 
above the heavens," and all the powers therein ; the 
might of his arm, and the majesty of his kingdom. 

5. Who is like unto the Lord our God, who dwell- 
eth on high ? 6. Who humbleth himself to behold 
the things that are in heaven and in earth. 

Highly as our Lord is exalted above this system, 
above these heavens and this earth of ours, yet he 
condescendeth to regard every thing that passeth 
here, and to make us, the inhabitants of this lower 
world, and, for our sakes, all the other creatures in 
it, the objects of his peculiar care, and paternal 
love. 

7. He raiseth the poor out of the dust, and lifteth 
the needy out of the dunghill ; 8. That he may set 
him with princes, even with the princes of his 
people. 

Such is his mercy to the poor sons of Adam in their 
fallen estate, that from the lowest and most abject 
condition, from the pollutions of sin, and from the 
dishonours of the grave, he raiseth them to righte- 
ousness and holiness, to glory and immortality ; he 
setteth them on high, with the inhabitants of the 
heavenly Jerusalem, " with the princes of his peo- 
ple," the leaders of the armies above, with angels 
and archangels before his throne. What is the ex- 
altation of the meanest beggar from a dunghill to an 
earthy diadem, when compared with that of human 
nature from the grave to the throne of God ! Here 
is honour worthy our ambition ; honour after which, 
all are alike invited to aspire ; which all may obtain, 
who strive worthily and lawfully ; and of which, 



Commentary on Psalm cxiv. 307 

when once obtained, nothing can ever deprive the 
possessors. 

9. He maketh the barren woman to keep house, 
and to be a joyful mother of children, Praise ye 
the Lord. 

In the sacred history of the Old Testament, we 
meet with frequent instances of barren women who 
were miraculously made to bear children. Isaac, 
Joseph, Samson, and Samuel, were thus born of 
Sarah, Rachel, the wife of Manoah, and Hannah. 
To these may be added, from the history of the New 
Testament, the instance of Elizabeth, the wife of Za- 
charias, and mother of St. John the Baptist. These 
examples may be considered as preludes to that 
marvellous exertion of divine power, whereby the 
Gentile churchy after so many years of barrenness, 
became, in her old age, " a fruitful parent of chil- 
dren, and the mother of us all." Wherefore it is writ- 
ten, " Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear ; 
break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that 
didst not travail with child : for more are the children 
of the desolate, than the children of the married wife, 
saith the Lord." Isa. liv. 1. Gal. iv. 27. 



PSALM CXIV. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Master- Day. 

ARGUMENT. 

This is another of the Psalms appointed by our 
church to be read on Easter-day. It celebrates 
the Exodus of Israel from Egypt, and the miracles 
wrought for that people, prefiguring the redemp- 
tion of our nature from sin and death, and the 



308 Commentary on Psalm CXIV. ■ 

wonders of mercy and love wrought for us by 
Jesus Christ. 

1. When Israel went out of Egypt, the house of 
Jacob from a people of strange language; 2. Judah 
was his, that is, GooVs sanctuary, and Israel his 
dominion. 

When Jehovah delivered Israel from the bondage 
of Egypt, he chose them for his peculiar people ; his 
presence resided in their camp, as in a " sanctuary," 
or temple ; and he ruled them, as an earthly king 
exerciseth sovereignty in his " dominions." This 
world, and the Prince of this world, are to us, what 
Egypt and Pharaoh were to Israel. The redemption 
of our nature, by the resurrection of Christ answereth 
to their redemption by the hand of Moses. When 
we are baptized into the death and resurrection of 
our Lord, we renounce the world, its pomps and 
vanities ; and should, therefore, quit its corrupt 
" language," manners, and customs, with as much 
alacrity and expedition, as " the family of Jacob" 
left those of Egypt. We are the " sanctuary," the 
temple, in which Christ dwelleth by his Spirit ; 
we are the subjects of his spiritual " kingdom," we 
are his peculiar people; in one word, we are his 
" church," and succeed, as such, to all the titles and 
privileges formerly conferred on Israel. 

3. The sea saw it and fled? Jordan was driven 
back. 

Although forty years intervened between the two 
events here mentioned, yet as the miracles were of a 
similar nature, they are spoken of together. In the 
passage of Israel through the Red Sea, we may 
contemplate our passage from a death of sin to a life 
of righteousness through the waters of baptism ; as 
our translation from death temporal to life eternal, is 
figured by their entrance into the promised land 
through the river Jordan. The waters in both cases 
are poetically represented as sensible of their Crea- 



Commentary on Psalm CXIV. 309 

tor's presence; and by their retiring, and opening a 
path for the people of God, we are taught, that if 
we continue faithful, all obstructions will be removed 
in our way to heaven. 

4. The mountains skipped like rams, and the little 
hills like lambs. 

The tremours of mount Sinai and the neighbouring 
hills, when the law was given, afforded some speci- 
men of that power which was afterwards exerted in 
the overthrow of idolatry, and the casting down of 
every high thing that exalteth itself against the 
Gospel at its publication. " See, therefore, that ye 
refuse not him that speaketh : for if they escaped 
not, who refused him that spake on earth, much 
more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him 
that speaketh from heaven ; whose voice then shook 
the earth ; but now he hath promised, saying, Yet 
once more I shake not the earth only, but also 
heaven." Heb. xii. 25. 

5. What ailed thee, O thou sea, that thou 
fleddest ; thou, Jordan, that thou wast driven back ? 
6. Ye mountains, that ye skipped like rams ; and 
ye little hills, like lambs? 7. Tremble, thou earth, 
at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the 
God of Jacob. 

If the divine presence hath such an effect upon 
inanimate matter, how ought it to operate on rational 
and accountable beings? Let us be afraid, with an 
holy fear, at the presence of God, in the world by 
his Providence, and by his Spirit in our consciences ; 
so that we may have hope and courage in the day 
when he shall arise to shake terribly the earth ,• when 
" every island shall fly away, and the mountains shall 
be no more found." Rev. xvi, 20. 

8. Which turned the rock into a standing water, 
thejlint into a fountain of waters. 

He who brought water out of the sacramental 
rock in the wilderness, hath since caused rivers of 
living water to flow through the world, from the 
3 



310 Commentary on Psalm cxv. 

"Rock of our salvation : nay, he hath dissolved the 
stony hearts of sinners, and made to spring up in 
them fountains of this water of life. For these great 
instances of his power and his love, we are taught 
to bless his holy name, when we sing this Psalm, as 
an evangelical hymn, on the day of our Lord's re- 
surrection. 



PSALM CXV. 

ARGUMENT. 

The church, 1, 2. prayeth that God would glorify 
himself in her salvation ; 3. she declareth her 
faith in him ; 4 — 8. exposeth the vanity and 
folly of idolatry ; 9 — 11. exhorteth her children 
to rely upon Jehovah; IS— 15. foretelleth how 
he will bless, prosper, and increase his people, 
16 — IS. never suffering the voice of praise and 
thanksgiving to cease upon the earth. 

1. Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto 
thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy 
truth's sake, 2. Wherefore should the heathen say, 
Where is now their God. 

From these two verses it is evident, that the 
Psalm is not a thanksgiving for victory, but a pe- 
tition for deliverance. God is intreated to " give 
glory," by such deliverance, " not to us," to our 
works or endeavours, but " to his own name;" he is 
requested to vouchsafe salvation, not on account of 
our merits, but of his " mercy," which inclineth him 
to be gracious ; of his " truth," which disposeth him 
to fulfil his promises ; and of his " honour," that the 
enemy may not have occasion to blaspheme him, 
and reproach his servants, as if their Master either 
coul<J not, or would not, help them in the day of 



Commentary on Psalm cxv. 311 

their distress. " Wherefore should the Heathen say, 
Where is now their God I" 

3. But our God is in the heavens : he hath done 
whatsoever he hath pleased; or, he doeth whatsoever 
he pleaseth* 

Should the insulting adversary ask the above 
question, " Where is now their God 7 ." the faithful 
are ready with their reply, a Our God is in the 
heavens ;" he is, where he ever was, upon his 
glorious throne, high over all the kingdoms of the 
world, and the powers of created nature; from thence 
he observeth and ordereth all things here below; 
what we suffer is by his appointment ; and at his 
good time and pleasure, he both can and will relieve 
us : " he doeth whatsoever he pleaseth." 

4. Their idols are silver and gold, 4he work of 
mens hands. 5. They have mouths, but they speak 
not ; eyes have they, but they see not. 6. They have 
ears, but they hear not ; noses have they, but they 
smell not. 7. They have hands, but they handle not ; 
feet have they, but they walk not ; neither speak they 
through their throat. 

A beautiful contrast is formed between the God 
of Israel and the Heathen idols. He made every 
thing, they are themselves made by men , he is in 
heaven, they are upon earth ; he doeth whatsoever 
he pleaseth, they can do nothing ; he secth the dis- 
tresses, heareth and answereth the prayers, accepteth 
the offerings, cometh to the assistance, and affecteth 
the salvation of his servants ; they are blind, deaf, 
and dumb, senseless, motionless, and impotent. 
Equally slow to hear, equally impotent to save in 
time of greatest need, will every worldly idol prove, 
on which men have set their affections, and to which 
they have, in effect, said, " Thou art my God." 

8. They that make them are like unto them ; so is 
every one that trusteth in them. 

Isolators, like the objects of their worship, are 
rather lifeless images than real men. What our Lord 

1 



312 Commentary on Psalm cxv. 

said of the Jews, is applicable to theni, and indeed 
to all who reject the knowledge of the true God, and 
the doctrines of salvation : " Having eyes they see 
not, having ears they hear not." They see not the 
things which belong unto their peace ; they hear not 
the word of instruction and exhortation ; they speak 
not of religion and the kingdom of heaven; they 
work not the works of piety and charity ; they walk 
not in the path of the divine commandments ; they 
are spiritually blind, deaf, dumb, lame, and impo- 
tent ; and when their idols are destroyed, they will 
perish in like manner. 

9. O Israel, trust thou in the Lord ; he is their 
help and their shield. 10. O house of Aaron, trust 
in the Lord ; he is their help and their shield. 
11. Ye that fear the Lord, trust in the Lord : he 
is their help and their shield. 

Let the men of the world make to themselves 
gods, and vainly trust in the work of their own hands 
or heads ; but let the church repose all her confi- 
dence in Jehovah, her Saviour and Redeemer, who 
alone can be her defender and protector ; more espe- 
cially let her ministers, the sons of the true Aaron, 
do this, who are the peculiar portion of their God, 
employed continually in his service, and designed to 
build up others in faith and hope ; and let all who 
have been instructed, by their ministry, in the fear 
of the Lord, trust always in him, nor suffer any 
apprehension of danger or distress to separate them 
from him. 

12. The Lord hath been, or, is, mindful of us ; 
he will bless us ; he will bless the house of Israel, he 
will bless the house of Aaron. 13. Be will bless 
them that fear the Lord, both small and great. 
14. Tlie Lord shall increase you more and more, 
you and your children. 15. Ye are blessed of the 
Lord, which made heaven and earth. 

The heart of the Psalmist is full of " blessing," 
and on his tongue is the word of kindness and com- 



Commentary on Psalm cxv. 313 

fort. The * blessing's" formerly confined to Israel, 
have since been extended to the whole race of man- 
kind. Jehovah, ever " mindful" of his creatures, 
hath visited the world by his Son and by his Spirit; 
he hath formed a church from among the Gentiles, 
appointed a priesthood and ministry in it, and given 
his benediction to both ; he hath " blessed," with 
the blessings of grace, " them that fear him," of all 
nations, and of every degree ; he hath " increased" 
and multiplied his people exceedingly ; and the 
faithful members of the Christian church are now 
" the blessed of Jehovah, who made heaven and 
earth" and who is, consequently, possessed of ali 
power in both. 

16. The heaven, even the heavens, or, the heavens 
of heavens, are the Lord's ; but the earth hath he 
given to the children of men. 17. The dead praise 
not the Lord, neither any that go down into silence. 
18. But we willbless the Lord, from this time forth 
and for evermore. Praise the Lord. 

He who himself dwelleth in the highest heavens, 
where he is praised and glorified by angels, hath 
* given the earth" for an habitation, at present, " to 
the sons of men," whose duty it is to praise and 
glorify him here below, as the angels do above. Now 
as " the dead cannot praise him," as they who sleep 
in the silent grave cannot celebrate him, we may be 
certain, that he will not suffer his people to be de- 
stroyed and extirpated, but will always preserve a 
church to " bless him" in all ages, till the end of the 
world ; when the dead shall be raised, and the choirs 
of heaven and earth shall be united, to praise and 
glorify him together before his throne for evermore. 



p 



314 Commentary on Psalm cxvi, 



PSALM CXVI. 

One of the Psalms to be used at the 
Churching of Women. 

ARGUMENT. 

It is not certain by whom, or upon what occasion, 
this Psalm was composed. It plainly appears, 
however, to be a song of thanksgiving for deliver- 
ance from trouble, either temporal, or spiritual, 
or both. To render it of general use, let it be 
considered as an evangelical hymn, in the mouth 
of a penitent, expressing his gratitude for salvation 
from sin and death. 1, 2. He declareth his love 
of God, who hath vouchsafed to hear his prayer ; 
3 — 9. describeth his distress, his deliverance out 
of it, and subsequent peace and comfort; 10, 11. 
he acknowledgeth himself to have been tempted 
to despond, but was supported by faith, in the 
day of trouble ; 12 — 19. he determineth to receive 
the cup of salvation, to praise and to serve Jeho- 
vah, who thus delivereth the souls of his people. 

1. I love the Lord, because he hath heard my 
voice and my supplications. 2. Because he hath 
inclined his ear unto me, therefore will I call upon 
him as long as 1 live* 

In the original it is, "I love *, because Jehovah 
hath heard," &c. The soul, transported with gra- 
titude and love, seems at first to express her affection 
without declaring its object, as thinking that all 
the world must know who is the person intended. 

* Some critics prefer our old version—" I am well pleased* 



Commentary on Psalm cxvi. 315 

Thus Mary Magdalen, in her conversation, at the 
sepulchre, with one whom she supposed to have been 
the gardener, though no previous mention had been 
made of Jesus, saith, " Sir, if thou have borne him 
hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will 
take him away :" John xx. 15. And ought not the 
love of God to be excited in all our hearts by the 
consideration that, when we were not able to raise 
ourselves up to him, he mercifully and tenderly 
" inclined*' and bowed down " his ear" to us ; he 
M heard our supplications," and descended from hea- 
ven to help and deliver us? With hope, therefore, 
and confidence should we " call upon him," in all 
our troubles, "as long as we live." 

3. The sorrows of death compassed me, and the 
pains of hell gat hold upon me : I found trouble and 
sorrow. 4. Then called I upon the name of the 
Lord ; O Lord, I beseech thee, deliver my soul. 

These " sorrows," or " bauds of death," once 
f compassed" the human race: these "pains of 
hell" were ready to seize on every son of Adam. 
The awakened and terrified conscience of a sinner 
hath felt the oppression of the former, and expe- 
rienced some foretaste of the latter. In this situation 
he is described by St. Paul as crying out, " O 
wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from 
this body of death ?" Let him take the course 
which the Psalmist took; let him "call upon the 
name of the Lord," even the Lord Jesus, who put 
himself in the sinner's place, and suffered for him 
unspeakable " sorrows and pains ;" let him do this, 
and he shall be saved ; and shall sing the praises of 
his almighty Saviour, in the words of this beautiful 
Psalm. 

5. Gracious is the Lord, and righteous ; yea, 
our God is merciful. 6. The Lord preserveth the 
simple : I was brought low, and he helped me. 

In the salvation of a sinner we contemplate God's 
<c grace," by which the work is effected ; his f* righ- 
p 2 



316 Commentary on Psalm cxvi. 

teousness," which causeth him to perform what he 
hath promised through Christ ; his " mercy/' which 
induced him to send his Son, and to make the pro- 
mise. This mercy is the mercy of a parent, and 
such as a parent showeth to those young and 
" simple" ones, who have been over-reached and de- 
ceived by a crafty adversary ; to those who fall, and 
are unable of themselves to rise again : " I was 
brought low, and he helped me." 

7. Return unto thy rest, O my soul, for the Lord 
hath dealt bountifully with thee. 8. For thou hast 
delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, 
and my feet from falling. 9. I will walk before the 
Lord in the land of the living. 

That peace of conscience, and joy in the Holy 
Ghost, which the penitent experienceth, as the effect 
and fruit of pardon, afford him some idea of the rest 
and felicity of heaven ; and, accordingly, he speaks 
as one translated to those happy mansions, where 
there is no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, 
because there is no more sin. A Christian, delivered 
out of the miseries of this troublesome world, and at 
rest in Abraham's bosom, would express himself, as 
one should think, in these very terms. Remission of 
sins ought to be followed by newness of life, and the 
resolution of him whose " soul" hath been " delivered 
from death, his eyes from tears, and his feet from fall- 
ing," should always be this, " I will walk before the 
Lord," as one under his inspection, " in the land 
of the living," or amongst the redeemed in the 
church ; until the time come for me to depart hence, 
and to be numbered with the saints in glory ever- 
lasting. v 

10. I believed, therefore have I spoken : I was 
greatly afflicted; 11. J said in my haste, all men are 
liars. 

In affliction and distresses, those of the spirit and 
conscience more especially, the soul is tempted to 
despond, and can only be supported by faith exert- 



Commentary on Psalm cxvi. 317 

ing itself in prayer : " I believed, and therefore, have 
I spoken," or " therefore spake 1," that is, as above, 
verse 4. " I called upon the name of the Lord ; O 
Lord, I beseech thee, deliver my soul." And this I 
did, though so " greatly afflicted," that I had said "in 
my haste," in my hurry and trepidation occasioned by 
fear and amazement, " all men are liars :" there is 
no credit to be given to their promises of deliverance; 
I am lost and undone for ever. Yet my faith failed 
not entirely, and, lo, my prayer hatbbeen heard and 
answered. St. Paul, relating the troubles which 
came upon him, and the manner in which he sus- 
tained them, thus citeth a part of the 10th verse: 
*' We, having the same spirit of faith, according as 
it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken : 
we also believe, and therefore speak ; knowieg that 
he, which raised up the Lord Jesus, shall raise up us 
also by Jesus, and shall present us with you." 2 Cor. 
iv. 13, 14. 

12. What shall I render unto the Lord for all 
his benefits towards me ? 13. I will take the cup of 
salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord. 14. 
I will pay my vows unto the Lord now in the pre- 
sence of all his people. 

The grateful penitent now asketh, what return he 
shall make to his kind Benefactor, for the most va* 
luable of all blessings conferred upon him. And he 
presently resolveth to make the only return in his 
power, namely, to acknowledge and declare before 
men the goodness of Jehovah, ascribing all the glory 
where it is all due. This he determineth to do, by 
" taking the cup of salvation," which, as Dr. Ham- 
mond observes, among the Jews was two-fold ; one 
offered in a more solemn manner in the temple; 
Numb, xxviii. 7. ; the other more private in families, 
called the cup of thanksgiving, or commemoration of 
any deliverance, begun by the master of the family, 
and attended, on festival days, with a suitable hymn ; 
such as was that sung by our Lord and his disciples 
p 3 



318 Commentary on Psalm cxvi. 

on the night when he advanced that cup into the sa- 
crament of his blood, which hath ever since been to 
Christians " the cup of salvation," and which all 
penitents should now receive in the church, with in- 
vocation, thanksgiving, and payment of the s * vows" 
made in time of trouble. 

15. Previous in the sight of the Lord is the death 
of his saints. 

The notion of the original word lip 1 in this place, 
for " rare/' or " precious," must be so taken as not 
to signify that which is spoken of to be desirable to, 
or in the presence of, the Lord ; for it is the life, not 
the death, of his servants which is precious, in that 
sense, to God, the preserver of their lives. But when 
it is said, that their u death is precious," it means in 
effect no more, than that it is so considered, it is 
rated at so high a price by God, as that he will not 
easily grant it to any one who most desires it of him. 
— Thus far Dr. Hammond. We may add, that 
much less will God be easily prevailed on to give up 
his people to death eternal. Rather will he work 
wonders of mercy and loving kindness to save them ; 
as the penitent happily experienceth in himself. | 

16. O Lord, truly / am thy servant, I am thy 
servant, and the son of thine handmaid : thou hast 
loosed my bonds. 17. I will offer to thee the sacri- 
fice of thanksgiving, and will call upon the name of 
the Lord. 18. I will pay my vows unto the Lord 
now in the presence of all his people. 19. In the 
courts of the Lord's house, in the midst of thee, O 
Jerusalem. Praise ye the Lord. 

Every penitent is the " servant" of God, " the son 
of his handmaid," the church, <4 loosed from his 
bonds," and redeemed from a state of slavery under 
sin, the world, and the devil, that he may serve a bet- 
ter Master, whose " yoke is easy, and his burden 
light." This blessed Master is from thenceforth the 
object of his love, duty, and adoration: to him he 
" offereth the sacrifice of thanksgiving," to him he 



Commentary on Psalm cxvn. 319 



44 payeth his vows," amoDg his fellow-servants in the 
church on earth ; longing for that day to come when, 
loosed also from the bonds of death and the grave, 
he shall be admitted to sing hallelujahs with saints 
and angels, in the " courts" of the eternal temple, 
even " in the midst of thee, O Jerusalem," the holy, 
heavenly, and glorious city of God Most High. 



PSALM cxvn. 

ARGUMENT. 

This Psalm, like the cxth, seems to be altogether 
prophetical of the joy that all the world should 
conceive, at the coming of the Messiah, to give 
salvation, first to the Jews, and then to all other 
nations, according to his faithful promise. 

Patrick. 

1. O praise the Lord, all ye nations: praise 
him all ye people, 2. For his merciful kindness 
is great towards us: and the truth of the Lord en- 
dureth for ever. Praise ye the Lord. 

It is remarkable, that of so short a Psalm one verse 
is quoted in the New Testament by St. Paul ; the 
second verse is explained, though not quoted. Two 
questions naturally arise, upon reading the Psalm; 
first, who are the 6< nations and people," exhorted to 
praise Jehovah? secondly, what is that "merciful 
kindness," and that M truth," for which they are ex- 
horted to praise him ? The apostle hath given a satis- 
factory and decisive answer to both these questions, 
Rom. xv. 8, 9, &c. " Now, 1 say, that Jesus Christ 
was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of 
God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers, 
and that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mer- 
cy ; as it is written, Praise the Lord, all ye Gentiles 



320 Commentary on Psalm cxviii. 



and laud hiin, all ye people." From the apostles 
reasoning, the verse of our Psalm, which he hath 
cited, appears to be a proof that " the Gentiles," or 
the Heathen world, should one day " glorify God ;" 
they are, therefore, the " people," whom the Psalm- 
ist, in the spirit of prophecy, exhorted to " praise 
Jehovah." It appears also, why the Gentiles were 
to glorify God ; namely, for his " mercy" and 
" truth," shown in confirming or accomplishing the 
" promises" concerning their vocation and conver- 
sion, " made unto the fathers # ;" to Abraham, and 
his seed for ever ; to all believers, whether of the 
circumcision, or the uncircumcision. Such, then, 
is the '* merciful kindness" of Jehovah, which is 
said, in the Psalm, to be " great," mighty, and 
powerful, " toward us ;" such his " truth," which is 
affirmed to " endure for ever;" as the promises were 
made good to the Gentiles, when the Jews, because 
of unbelief, had been cast off. Let the hallelujahs 
of the redeemed be suitable to that " mercy," and 
co-eternal with that " truth." 



PSALM CXVIII. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Easter Day. 

ARGUMENT. 

In this Psalm, a king of Israel appears leading his 
people in solemn procession to the temple, there to 

* " Confirmata — et Veritas Domini"— Promiserat enim 
Abrahamo Deus futurum, ut per Christum, benedietum illud 
Abrahami semen, benedicerentnr omnes Gentes, Gen. xii. 3. 
xv. 18. interprete Apostolo, Gal. iii. 16. Quod cum praesti- 
tum videamus,jam intelligimus vere advenisse Christum, ac 
promissa Dei firma esse omnia. Bossuet. 



Commentary on Psahn cxviii. 321 

offer up the sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving-, 
for the marvellous deliverancefrom his enemeis, and 
a glorious victory gained over them, After inviting 
the whole nation, 1 — 4. to join with him upon this 
joyful occasion, he describeth at large, 5 — 18. his 
danger, and his deliverance from it which latter 
is wholly attributed to the power and goodness of 
Jehovah. After this, as Mr. Mudge has rightly 
observed, there ensues a kind of sacred dialogue, 
Being come to the temple, the victorious monarch 
speaks the 19th verse; they that open the gate, the 
20th ; he again, as he enters, the 21st ; they with 
him seem to speak the next four verses, to the 
25th ; the priests of the temple the 26th ; the first 
part to the king, the other to the people ; the 
people the 27th; he the 28th; the 29th is the 
chorus verse, concluding as it began. The re- 
peated application made of the 22d verse in the 
New Testament, and the appointment of the 
Psalm, by the church, to be used on Easter-day, 
lead us to consider the whole as a triumphant 
hymn, sung by King Messiah, at the head of the 
Israel of God, on occasion of his resurrection and 
exaltation. 

1. O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good: 
because his mercy endureth for ever. 2. Let Israel 
now say, that his mercy endureth for ever. 3. Let 
the house of Aaron now say, that his mercy endureth 
for ever. 4. Let them now that fear the Lord, say, 
that his mercy endureth for ever. 

The subjects of " thanksgiving" here proposed 
are Jehovah's " goodness" and his " mercy." He is 
the sole fountain of absolute and essential " good- 
ness," the source of all excellency and perfection; 
p 5 



322 Commentary on Psalm cXvtil. 

ami his " mercy" is the channel by which he com- 
municateth this goodness, in an overflowing stream, 
to his people, who are, therefore exhorted to praise 
him. The Christian church is now " the Israel of 
God;"iier ministers constitute the true " house of 
Aaron," being the spiritual progeny of our great 
High Priest; and the Gentiles, not the Jews, are 
they who know and " fear Jehovah." Let these all 
celebrate, for these all have experienced, the benefits 
and blessings of " eternal mercy," by the resurrection 
of Jesus from the dead. 

5. I called upon the Lord in distress: the Lord 
answered me, and set me in a large place. 

The true value of every deliverance is to be 
estimated by the nature of the " distress'' which 
required it. The rescue of David from his enemies, 
or that of Israel from captivity, might deservedly be 
extolled with the songs of Sion. How much more, 
then, is the church universal bound to lift up her 
voice in honour of Jehovah, who hath redeemed her 
from her spiritual adversaries, and freed her from 
the bondage of corruption, through Him who " died 
for her sins, and rose again for her justification ;" 
who, in the days of his flesh, being, on her account 
in ** distress" and affliction, " called upon Jehovah, 
and was answered," by an " enlargement" from the 
narrow prison of the grave, to a boundless and 
glorious kingdom! 

6. The Lord is on my side ; I will not fear : what 
can man do unto me? 7. The Lord taketh my part 
with them that help me ? therefore shall I see my 
desire upon them that hate me. 

By frequent experience of the divine power and 
mercy, from time to time exerted on the behalf of 
Israel, that nation was instructed to trust in Jehovah ; 
and, whenever they did so, success and victory never 
failed to attend their steps. Would not the case be 
the same with us in all our undertakings, if our faith 
was right and steadfast in God, who raised up Jesus 



Commentary on Psalm cxvm. 323 



from the dead, and who bath promise to make us 
'* more than conquerors I" 

8. It is better to trust in the Lord, than to put 
confidence in man. 9. It is better: to trust hi the 
Lord, than to put confidence in princes. 

Armies of " men," however numerous, and to 
appearance powerful, may be routed and dispersed 
at once. " Princes" may not be able to help us : 
if able, they may fail us, as not being willing to do 
it; if both able and willing, they may die, ere they 
can execute their purpose. But that hope which is 
placed in God, can never, by these, or any other 
means, be disappointed. As we so often repeat these 
two verses, let us act agreeably to the declaration 
which we then make, and, instead of courting the 
world, by undue compliances, for its deceitful smiles 
and treacherous favours, let us in all points do our 
duty, and leave the event to God above. To en- 
courage us in the performance of such a resolution 
as this, let it be remembered, that because our 
Saviour ** witnessed a good confession before Pontius 
Pilate," and with meekness and patience resigned 
himself to the death of the cross for it, therefore God 
exalted him to glory and honour. 

10. All nations compassed me about : but in the 
name of the Lord will I, or, I did, destroy them. 
11. They compassed me about, yea, they compassed 
me about: but in the name of the Lord I will \ or, 
I did, destroy them. 12. They compassed me about 
like bees, they are quenched as the fire of thorns : for 
in the name of the Lord I will, or, I did, destroy 
them. 

The tenour of the Psalm being one of thanksgiving 
for a deliverance already experienced, seemeth to 
require that the verb, at the close of each of these 
verses, should be rendered in the past time; not 4< I 
will destroy them," but " I did destroy them;" espe- 
cially as it is said, " they compassed me about," 
and " they are quenched." As David and Israel 
p6 



324 Commentary on Psalm cxvilf, 

were encompassed by hostile nations, over whom, 
through God's assistance, they often triumphed ; so 
the Son of David, in the day of his passion, was 
surrounded by the furious multitude of Jews and 
Gentiles, seeking his life ; and, after the same exam- 
ple, his mystical body, the church, hath frequently 
been, on all sides, vexed and persecuted in the 
world. But, through the power of Jehovah, Christ 
overcame, and is set down on the right hand of the 
Majesty on high. The church, likewise, hath often 
risen superior to the efforts of her innumerable and 
malicious enemies, whose fury hath blazed forth 
against her with the sudden fierceness of" fire," when 
it is applied to a heap of dry " thorns;" and hath 
been as soon at an end ; she hath triumphed, yea, 
and she will finally triumph, " in the name of the 
Lord her God." 

13. Thou hast thrust sore at me, that I might 
fall: hut the Lord helped me. 14. The Lord is 
my strength and song, and is become my salvation. 
15. The voice of rejoicing and salvation is in the 
tabernacles of the righteous : the right hand of the 
Lord doth valiantly. 16. The right hand of the 
Lord is exalted ; the right hand of the Lord doth 
valiantly. 

The church may consider herself as victorious 
over her great adversary, the author of all evil, who 
had made his grand effort to effect her destruction, 
by putting to death her champion and king, Mes- 
siah. But Jehovah appeared at the time appointed, 
to bring him, and, virtually, all that should believe 
in him, from the dead. " Thou hast thrust sore at 
me, that I might fall; but Jehovah helped me." 
Risen, therefore, with Christ, from the grave, we 
proceed to praise Jehovah, in the words which Moses 
and Israel first used, when they had ascended from 
the depths of the sea, and beheld their enemies 
destroyed for ever; " Jehovah is my strength, and 
my song, and is become my salvation :" Exod. xv. 2.. 



Commentary on Psalm cxvili. 325 

And never doth that sacred day come round, on 
which the resurrection of Jesus is celebrated, but 
" the voice of rejoicing- is in the tabernacles of the 
righteous;" there is a noise of them that sing for 
joy, in the camp of the saints ; the church militant 
res jundeth with thanksgiving, and the voice of me- 
lody ; paradise is restored below, and earth beareth 
some resemblance of heaven, while these transporting 
hymns are sung in honour of our great Redeemer. 
He is that " Arm and Right Hand of Jehovah" 
which hath " done valiantly," which hath crushed 
our strongest enemy, and is very highly " exalted" 
over all. " Thy right hand, O Lord, is become 
glorious in power ; thy right hand, O Lord, hath 
dashed in pieces the enemy." Exod. xv. 6. 

17. I shall not die, but live, and declare the works 
of the Lord. 18. The Lord hath chastened me 
sore: but he hath not given me over unto death. 

As Christ is risen, " we shall not die, but live;" 
we shall not die eternally, but we shall live, in this 
world, the life of grace; in the world to come, the 
life of glory ; that we may, in both, " declare the 
works" and chant the praises of God our Saviour. 
We are " chastened" for our sins, but " not given 
over to death" and destruction everlasting; nay, 
our being " chastened" is now a proof that we are 
not so " given over;" for " what son is he whom 
the father chasteneth not?" Heb. xii. 7. 

19. Open to me the gates of righteousness ; I will 
go in to them, and I will praise the Lord : 20. 
This gate, or, This is the gate, of the Lord, unto 
which the righteous shall enter. 21. I will thank 
thee, for thou hast heard ?ne, and art become my sal- 
vation. 

The faithful, like David and his people of old, de- 
mand admission into the courts of the Lord's house, 
there to praise him for his great and manifold mer- 
cies. But we may extend our ideas much farther, 
and consider the whole company of the redeemed, 



326 Commentary on Psalm cxviii. 

as beholding the angels ready to unbar the gates of 
heaven, and throw open the doors of the eternal 
sanctuary, for the true disciples of the risen and glo- 
rified Jesus to enter in. " Open ye," may believers 
exclaim in triumph to those celestial spirits, who 
delight to minister to the heirs of salvation, " open 
ye the gates of righteousness/' those gates, through 
which nothing unclean can pass, " that the righteous 
nation, which keepeth the truth, may enter in," 
Isa. xxvi. 2. and sing, with your harmonious choirs, 
the praises of him who sitteth upon the throne ; 
for he hath overcome the sharpness of death, he 
hath opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers. 

This is the gate of the Lord, into which the 
righteous shall enter," to take possession of the in- 
heritance prepared for them, " to thank" him who 
hath " heard them, and is become their salvation.'* 

22. The stone which the builders refused, is be- 
come the head stone of the corner, 23. This is the 
Lord's doing, it is marvellous in our eyes. 

Whether this passage had first a reference to the 
case of David*, who, as a figure of Messiah, was 
brought from a state of rejection and persecution to 
the throne of Israel ; or whether there be any truth 
in a Jewish tradition, concerning a certain stone, 
which after having been, by the builders of the 
second temple, thrown aside among the rubbish, was 
at last found to be exactly fitted for the honourable 
place of a chief corner stone ; it is neither possible 
nor needful to ascertain. That the verses belong, in 
a full proper sense, to Messiah, is confessed by the 
Rabbis, and acknowledged by all. No text in the 
Old Testament is quoted by the writers of the Ne\v s 
so often as this, which we meet with in six different 
places; namely, Matt. xxi. 42. Mark xii. LO. 

* David a Saiile et aliquandia a decern tribulus reprobatns 
ac solitribui Judas agnitus, deinde omnium priaceps ; et sab 
figuia ejus Christus a, Judaeis ac gentibus impetitas, mox utro- 
rumque caput, ut ipse interpretatur, Matt. xxi. 42. Bossuet. 



Commentary on Psalm cxvui. 327 

Luke xx. 17. Acts iv. 11. Ephes; ii. 20. 1 Pet. 
ii. 4. The sum and substance of the New Testament 
applications and expositions is, that Jesus Christ is 
the stone here mentioned ; that he was rejected and 
set at nought by the chief priests and Pharisees, the 
then builders of the church ; but that, being chosen 
of God, and precious to him, this most valuable 
stone, thus despised and rejected of men, thus thrown 
among the rubbish, and buried in it, was, at length, 
from such a state, exalted to be the chief corner- 
stone in the building, the main support of the edifice, 
and a centre of union for Jew and Gentile, the two 
parts of which it consisted ; that this was the work 
of God, and the admiration of man. And what can 
be more truly marvellous, than that a person, put to 
death as a malefactor, and laid in the grave, should 
from thence arise immortal, and become the head of 
an immortal society; should ascend into heaven, be 
invested with power, and crowned with glory ; and 
should prepare a way for the sons of Adam to follow 
him into those mansions of eternal bliss ? 

24. This is the day which the Lord hath made, 
we will rejoice and be glad in it. 

Of the day on which Christ arose from the dead, 
it may, with more propriety than of any other day, 
be affirmed, " This is the day which Jehovah hath 
made;" Then it was, that the " rejected stone' 1 
became the (i head of the corner." A morning then 
dawned which is to be followed by no evening; a 
brighter sun arose upon the world, which is to set 
no more; a day began, which will never end; and 
night and darkness departed, to return not again. 
For thus saith the Lord to his church by the pro- 
phet Isaiah, " Thy sun shall no more go down, nei- 
ther shall thy moon withdraw itself, for the Lord 
shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy 
mourning shall be ended Isa. lx. 20. Easter-day 
is in a peculiar manner consecrated to Him, who, by 
his resurrection, triumphed over death and hell. On 

1 



328 Commentary on Psalm cxviii. 

that day, through faith, we triumph with him : we 
" rejoice and are glad in his salvation." 

25. Save now, I beseech thee, O Lord ; O Lord, I 
beseech thee, send now prosperity . 26. Blessed be 
he that cometh in the name of the Lord : we have 
blessed you out of, or, you that are of, the house of 
the Lord. 

As a prelude to the triumphant manner in which 
Jesus Christ, after his resurrection, should ascend to 
the heavenlv Jerusalem, he entered the earthly city, 
before his passion, amidst the acclamations of the 
multitude, who hailed him as King- of Sion, and 
with palm-branches, the emblems of victory, in their 
hands, sung before him these words, partly taken 
from our Psalm, " Hosanna to the Son of David: 
blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord : 
Hosanna in the highest." The word " Hosanna," 
is in the original, W^, " Save now !" The form 
of words used by the people was both a petition and 
a congratulation ; as if they had said, Let us beseech 
Jehovah, in the language of the cxviiith Psalm, to 
grant salvation to the Son of David, and to send us 
now prosperity under him : Blessed is he who thus 
cometh, not in his own name and power, but in the 
name and power of Jehovah, according to the pro- 
phecies concerning him, to deliver us from all our 
enemies : ratify, O Jehovah, in the highest, or in 
heaven, these petitions which we make for the salva- 
tion and prosperity of our King, that thy blessings 
upon him and us may be established on earth. Since 
the resurrection of our Lord, the faithful have ex- 
pressed, in these two verses, the same wishes and 
prayers for the increase of his kingdom, and the 
prosperity of his house and family, of his ministers 
and his people : '? We bless you that are of the house 
of Jehovah." 

27. God is the Lord, which hath showed us light: 
bind the ^sacrifice with cords even unto the horns of 
the altar. 



Commentary on Psalm cxxvu. 329 

As Jehovah hath manifested his power and glory, 
by raising Christ from the dead ; as he hath, by so 
doing, " showed us the light" of life and immortal- 
ity ; let us observe the festival, which is designed to 
perpetuate the memory of so great and joyful an 
event. " Christ, our passover," saith an apostle, 
" is sacrificed for us ; therefore let us keep the feast :" 
1 Cor. v. 7. Let us keep it, only changing legal for 
evangelical sacraments and ceremonies ; let us go to 
the altar, not to see a figure of the Lamb of God, as 
he was to be slain ; but to behold a representation 
of him as he hath been slain ; to behold, in figure, 
his body broken, and his blood poured out; to eat 
the bread of life, and drink the cup of salvation. 

28. Thou art my God, and I will praise thee : 
thou art my God, I will exalt thee. 29. O give 
thanks unto the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy 
endureth for ever. 

The Prophet declareth his resolution to " praise" 
and to " exalt," to magnify and to glorify, his 

God he then concludes, as he began, with exhort- 
ing all the world to do the same. Preserve to us, 
blessed Lord, the use of these divine hymns in thy 
church, until, at the resurrection of the just, we shall 
celebrate an Easter in heaven, and sing them new in 
the kingdom of God. 



PSALM CXXVII. 

One of the Psalms to be used at the Churching of 
W omen. 

ARGUMENT. 

If this Psalm were written by Solomon, or by David 
for Solomon, as the title imported), it was proba- 
bly used again at the time of rebuilding the city 



330 Commentary on Psalm cxxvn. 

and temple, after the return from Babylon. But 
indeed it is a Psalm which can never be out of sea- 
son, the design of its author being to teach us the 
necessity of a dependence upon God and his bless- 
ing, in every work to which we set our hands. 
What is said with regard to an earthly house, city, 
and family, extendeth also to the spiritual house, 
city, and family of Christ, which are now, what 
Jerusalem, the temple, and the people of Israel, 
were in old time. 

1. Except the Lord build the house, they labour 
in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, 
the watchman waJceth but in vain. 

In every undertaking, the blessing of God must 
accompany the labours of man, to render them effec- 
tual. No work can prosper without Him, nor can 
any design miscarry under his favour and protection, 
which are equally necessary to be obtained by the 
builder in time of peace, and by the soldier in time 
of war. But they, above all men, ought to implore 
the divine grace and benediction, who are employed 
either in building or defending the spiritual house 
and city of God ; especially as the same persons, like 
the Jews after the captivity, surrounded by enemies 
always ready to obstruct the work, are often obliged 
to hold a sword in one hand, while they build with 
the other. Our own edification in faith and holiness 
must likewise be carried on by us in this attitude, by 
reason of the many temptations which are continual- 
ly assailing us. It may also be remarked, that both 
Solomon and Zerubbabel had vainly laboured to con- 
struct the first or the second material temple, unless 
Jehovah himself had built the true house for the 
reception of his glory, that is to say, the temple of 
Christ's body, and, after it was fallen down, had rear- 
ed it again by a resurrection from the dead. 



Commentary on Psalm cxxvn. 831 

2. It is vain for you to rise up early , to sit up 
late f to eat the bread of sorrows : for so he giveth 
his beloved sleep. 

The Psalmist doth not, certainly, intend to say, 
that labour and diligence are vain, but that they are 
so, except the Lord be with the labourer : the busi- 
ness is not to be done by all the industry and pains, 
all the carking and caring in the world, without Him ; 
whereas, if his aid be called in, if part of our time be 
spent in prayer, not the whole of it in prayerless 
toiling and moiling, our work will become easier, and 
go on better ; a solicitude and anxiety for its success 
and completion will no longer prey upon our minds 
by day, and break our rest at night ; we shall cheer- 
fully fulfil our daily tasks, and then, with confidence 
and resignation, lay our heads upon our pillows, and 
God will " give to his beloved" a sweet and undis- 
turbed " sleep," which shall fit them to return every 
morning, with renewed vigour and alacrity, to their 
stated employments. This seemeth to be the import 
of the verse. An obscurity has been occasioned in 
the translations by rendering the adverb P so ; "so 
he giveth his beloved sleep ;" in which form, this last 
part of the verse will not connect with what goes be- 
fore. But if, p be translated, like its kindred par- 
ticle, PN, " surely * he giveth his beloved sleep ;" 
or, as Dr. Hammond renders it, " since he giveth 
his beloved sleep," the difficulty will vanish, and the 
sense appear to be as above. Nor can we easily find 
a more profitable piece of instruction, with regard to 
the management of all our concerns, temporal and 
spiritual. 

3. Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord : and 
the fruit of the womb is his reward. 

The labours of mankind, first in building houses 

* This is the second of the senses ghen to this particle by 
Noldius, who cites, in confirmalion of it, 1 Sam. ix. 13. 
I 1 Kings xx. 40. 



332 Commentary on Psalm cxxvn. 

and cities, and then in guarding and securing" their 
possessions, are undergone, not with a view to them- 
selves alone, but to their families, which they would 
establish and perpetuate. The Psalmist, therefore, 
in the preceding verses, having taught men to ex- 
pect a happy settlement only from the favour of Jeho- 
vah, now directs them to look up to him for the far- 
ther blessing of a numerous and virtuous progeny. 
He can in a moment blast the most fruitful stock, or 
he can " make the barren woman to keep house, and 
to become a joyful mother of children." " Lo, chil- 
dren are an heritage of Jehovah ;" an heritage which 
he bestows on those who fear him ; " the fruit of 
the womb is a reward" conferred by him, where he 
sees it will be a blessing indeed, upon faithful 
and pious parents. St. Paul calls the converts 
made by his ministry, his " children;" and all be- 
lievers are the children of Christ, the " heritage" 
given him by his Father, the " reward" of his righ- 
teous life, and meritorious death ; as it is written, 
*' I will give thee the heathen for thine inherit- 
ance:" " He shall see of the travail of his soul, and 
shall be satisfied." Psalm ii. 8. Isa. liii. 11. 

4. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man : 
so are children of the youth. 

Children, when well educated, are like so many 
■ ' arrows in the hand of a strong man," ready winged 
with duty and love, to fly to the mark ; polished and 
keen, to grace and maintain the cause of their pa- 
rents, to defend them from hostile invasions, and in- 
stantly to repel every assailant. The apostles and 
first Christians were arrows in the hand of the Mes- 
siah, with which he encountered his enemies, and 
subdued the nations to the faith. When by the 
splendour of their sanctity, the power of their mi- 
racles, and the efficacy of their preaching, they pierc- 
ed the hearts of thousands, and ten thousands, what 
were they but " arrows in the hand of the 
Mighty One?" And in this instance likewise it may 



Commentary on Psalm cxxvii. 3533 

truly be said, that no well -nurtured son of Christ and 
the church will hear his father dishonoured, or des- 
pise his mother when she is old. 

5. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of 
them : they shall not he ashamed, but they shall 
speak with the enemies in the gate. 

In a house full of dutiful children consisteth the 
happiness of their parents, who then can never want 
friends, that will at no time be " ashamed," but will 
at all times rejoice to appear for them, to meet their 
" enemies" and accusers " in the gate," or place of 
judgment*; there to answer any charge against 
them, to vindicate them in their persons, their good 
name, or their property. It is a glorious sight to be- 
hold children thus standing forth in the defence of 
their parents. In the multitude of true believers 
consist the glory of Christ, and the riches of the 
church. How forward were the primitive Christians 
to meet the enemies of these their spiritual parents 
M in the gate ;" how ready, in their cause, to speak 
openly, and having witnessed a good confession, to 
die by the hand of the executioner ! Therefore shall 
they not be ashamed at the judgment of the last day, 
but shall then stand with great boldness before the 
face of such as have afflicted, persecuted, and tor- 
mented them. For their heavenly Father will then 
be their Judge, and will own, in his turn, the cause 
of his dutiful children, who for his sake endured tri- 
bulatien, and loved not their lives unto the death. 
Confusion shall overwhelm the accuser of the bre- 
thren, with all the instruments of his malice; but 
glory, honour, and immortality, shall be given to the 
children of God. 

* Mr. Merrick observes, that the gate was sometimes the 
seat of war, as well as the place of judicature. " Then was 
war in the gates ;" Judges v. 8. He mentions a remarkable 
Chinese proverb : 11 When a son is born into a family, a bow 
and arrow are bung before the gate." 



334 Commentary on Psalm cxxviii. 



PSALM CXXVIII. 
To be used at the Solemnization of Matrimony. 

ARGUMENT. 

This Psalm containeth a promise made to him who, 
1. feared Jehovah, and walked in his ways, that 
he should be blessed, 2. in his person, and, 3, 4. 
in his family, and that he should see the good of 
Jerusalem. The Psalm was probably, sung at 
the marriages of the Israelites, as it is now a part 
of the matrimonial service among us. In its pro- 
phetical and exalted sense, it hath respect to the 
person, marriage, family, and city, of Messiah. 

1. Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord : 
that walketh in his ways. 

Happiness belongeth not to the rich, the powerful, 
and the prosperous, as such ; but in every state and 
condition, blessed is the man that "feareth Jehovah," 
that so feareth him as to obey him, and to " walk in 
his ways," notwithstanding all the obstructions he 
may meet with from the world, the flesh, and the 
devil. Blessed above all the sons of men, and the 
author of blessing to them all, was the man Christ 
Jesus, because above them all, and for them all, he 
feared, he loved, and he obeyed. 

2. For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: 
happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee. 

The person is here beautifully changed, and to the 
man who feareth Jehovah is addressed an enumera- 
tion of those blessings which shall attend him. He 
is to " eat the labour of his hands," that is, the fruit, 
or returns of his labours. Hereby it is implied, that 



Commentary on Psalm cxxviii. 335 

he is not to be idle, but to " labour," thai he may 
eat ; that he is not to be niggardly, but to ■* eat," 
when he has laboured ; that he is neither to be un- 
just, by living upon the labours, nor enslaved,. by de- 
pending upon the bounty, of others, but to eat of 
" his own" labours ; and that he, whose labours pro- 
cure him a sustenance, hath enough to be " blessed" 
and happy. " Happy shalt thou be, and it shall be 
well with thee:" every thing shall happen, which 
God seeth to be best for thee in this life, and (as 
saith the Chaldee Paraphrast on the place) " it shall 
be good to thee in the world to come." The glory 
of Christ, and the salvation of mankind, were the 
fruits of his actions and his sufferings in the days of 
his flesh ; so that, in the enjoyment of them, he doth 
no more than " eat of the labours of his hands or, 
to use the words of Isaiah, " he seeth of the travail 
of his soul, and is satisfied." Before he went hence, 
he took comfort in the reflection, " I have glorified 
thee on the earth, I have finished the work which 
thou gavest me to do John xvii. 4. Happy shalt 
thou be, O Christian, and it shall be well with thee, 
if at thy latter end thou shalt be able to draw com- 
fort from the same consideration. 

3. Thy v)ife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides 
of thine house : thy children like olive plants round 
about thy table. 

Marriage was ordained by God to complete the 
felicity of man in a state of innocence ; and the bene- 
diction of heaven will ever descend upon it, when 
undertaken in " the fear of the Lord." The vine, a 
lowly plant, raised with tender care, becoming, by 
its luxuriance, its beauty, its fragrance, and its 
clusters, the ornament and glory of the house to 
which it is joined, and by which it is supported, 
forms the finest imaginable emblem of a fair, virtuous, 
and faithful wife. The olive-trees planted by the 
inhabitants of the eastern countries around their 



336 Commentary on Psalm cxxvni. 

tables, or banqueting places in their gardens *, to 
cheer the eye by their verdure, and to refresh the 
body by their cooling shade, do no less aptly and 
significantly set forth the pleasure which parents 
feel, at the sight of a numerous and flourishing off- 
spring. As marriage was from the beginning in- 
tended to represent the mystical union between 
Christ and his church, which union is spoken of in 
matrimonal language, through the Scriptures both 
of the Old and New Testament, we need but ex- 
tend our view, to behold, under the imagery of the 
vine and the olive-plants, the prolific spouse of 
Messiah, and the children of peace assembed round 
the table of their heavenly Father. See Psalm lxxx. 
8. Rom. xi. 17. 

4. Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that 
feareth the Lord. 

Are temporal blessings, then, the reward of piety? 
They are not its only, nor chief reward, but are often 
" added," even under the new dispensation, to those 
who "first seek the kingdom of God, ana his righ- 
teousness." When they are withholden, or with- 
drawn, it is for the security or increase of those more 
valuable blessings which are spiritual. There are 
times, when father, mother, brethren, sisters, wife, 
children, and lands, must be given up for Christ's 
and the Gospel's sake. But ample amends are pro- 
mised to be made to all who thus part with earthly 
relations and possessions. They find in the church 
other fathers, mothers, brethren, sisters, children, 

* This is bishop Patrick's idea. The learned and ingenious 
Mr. Harmer, in his very valuable " Observations on divers 
Passages of Scripture," (Vol. I. p. 197. 2nd edit.) disapproves 
of it: as, he says, " we find no such arbours in the Levant, 
nor is the tree very proper for the purpose." He thinks, 
therefore, the " table" refers to the " children" only, and not 
to the " olives." But Mr. Merrick, in his Annotations, pro- 
duces some very good arguments on the side of bishop 
Patrick. 



Commentary on Psalm cxxviii. 337 

&c. and at the resurrection they will " inherit all 
things," Rev. xxi. 7. and brighter coronets of glory 
shall sparkle from their heads. The Scriptures shew 
us the servants of God in every state and condition ; 
we view them rich and poor, honoured and despised, 
sick and in health, married and single, childless 
and otherwise, in prosperity and in adversity; to 
teach us, that all things work together for good to 
them who love God : so that the believer hath com- 
fort always. If temporal blessings be granted him, 
he accepteth them as shadows of those which are 
eternal ; if they are denied, he remembereth that 
they are only shadows, and are therefore denied, that 
he may fix his thoughts and affections more firmly 
on the substance. 

5. The Lord shall bless thee out of Zion : and 
thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem, all the days 
of thy life. 6. Yea, thou shalt see thy children's 
children, and peace upon Israel, 

Every tr"e Israelite rejoiceth in the prosperity of 
Zion ; a biessing upon the church diffuseth itself to 
all the members thereof ; and the good of Jerusalem, 
with peace upon Israel, is all the good we can desire 
to see upon earth. Hereafter we shall see greater 
things than these. Jehovah from the heavenly Zion 
will bless us with the vision of his immortal glory ; 
we shall see the good of the new Jerusalem, the 
wealth, beauty, and majesty of that holy city ; we 
shall see the generations of the faithful walking in 
the light of it; with that everlasting peace and rest, 
which remain for the Israel of God. These are the 
blessings promised to Messiah, and to his seed, for 
evermore. 



Q 



338 Commentary on Psalm cxxx. 

PSALM CXXX. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Ash- Wednesday. 

ARGUMENT. 

This is the sixth of those which are styled " Peni- 
tential Psalms." It is calculated for the use of 
the church, or any member thereof ; and con- 
tained, 1, 2. a complaint of great distress; 3. a 
confession of man's sinfulness; 4—8. an act of 
faith in the divine mercy, and the promised re- 
demption. 

1 . Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O 
Lord. 2. Lord, hear my voice : let thine ears be 
attentive to the voice of my supplications. 

From the depths of sin, and the misery occasioned 
by sin, the penitent, like another Jonas, entombed in 
the whale's belly, and surrounded by all the waves 
of the ocean, crieth unto God for help and salvation. 
Fervent prayer will find its way, through every ob- 
struction, to the ears of him who sitteth upon his 
holy hill. And may not the bodies of the faithful, 
buried in the dust, be said to cry, out of the depths 
of the grave, for a joyful resurrection, according to 
the promise and the pattern of Christ, who, after 
three days, came forth from the heart of the earth, 
as Jonas did from the belly of the whale ? 

3. If thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, O 
Lord, who shall stand? 

A reason is here urged, why God should spare and 
pardon the suppliant, namely, because, was he accu- 
rately to note the offences of the best men, and to 
produce them in judgment against the offenders, no 



Commentary on Psalm cxxx. 339 

man could stand in that judgment, but the whole 
race of Adam must continue to eternity under the 
dominion of sin and death ; which a gracious and 
merciful God will not permit to be the case. It 
is accordingly declared in the next verse, that 
measures had been taken to prevent so deplorable a 
catastrophe. 

4. But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou 
mayest be feared. 

True repentance is founded upon the sense of our 
own wretchedness, and faith in the divine mercy. 
Without the former, we should never seek for par- 
don and grace ; without the latter, we should despair 
of finding them. The Psalmist, therefore, having in 
the three preceding verses expressed the one, now 
maketh profession of the other. " There is forgive- 
ness with thee " thou wilt not " mark iniquities," 
or leave us to the rigours of strict justice, but thou 
hast devised means that we perish not forever: thou 
hast provided an atonement, and in virtue of that 
atonement, the sinner may obtain pardon; he need 
not, therefore, reject thy service, and cast himself 
away in despair, but is encouraged to serve thee 
acceptably through faith, with godly fear : " there is 
forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared." 
Or the meaning may be, Thou forgivest man, that 
so, being restored to thy favour, and endued with 
thy grace, he may thenceforth fear, or serve thee, as 
it becomes one who hath obtained mercy to do. 

5. I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait, and 
in his word do 1 hope. 6. My soid waiteth for the 
Lord, more than they that Watch for the morn- 
ing : I say, more than they that watch for the 
morning. 

The repetitions here do beautifully express that 
ardent desire which the contrite soul hath for the 
salvation of God. Dr. Hammond seemeth to have 
given the true construction of ver.G.TTN 1 ? " My 
Q2 



840 Commentary on Psalm cxxx. 

soul to the Lord, that is, riseth, cometh, or hasten- 
eth to the Lord, lp2b DH&ttfD from the morning 
watches, that is, from the time when they hasten to 
their watches, in other words, the guards every 
morning that hasten to their watches are not earlier 
than I am in my daily addresses to God. Who 
these watches or guards of the morning are, the 
Chaldee hath best expressed : They that observe 
the morning watches, that they may offer their 
morning oblation, that is, the priests which in their 
turns officiated ; or rather, some officers of theirs, 
which were peculiarly appointed from a tower to 
" expect the first appearance of break of day." 
With such earnestness did the ancient church expect 
the appearance of that day-spring from on high, 
which was, in the fulness of time, to visit the world. 
With equal earnestness have the faithful since looked 
out for the dawning of that last morning, which is to 
abolish sin, and put an end to sorrow. 

7. Let Israel hope in the Lord : for with the 
Lord there is mercy, and with him is plenteous 
redemption. 8. And he shall redeem Israel from 
all his iniquities, or, sins. 

These verses are perfectly evangelical. The church 
of Israel was exhorted to " hope" in Jehovah, be- 
cause with him there was " mercy, and plenteous re- 
demption." And of what nature was that redemp- 
tion r A redemption from sin ; " he shall redeem 
Israel from all his SINS consequently, from all 
trouble and misery, which are but the effects of sin, 
and will cease when their cause shall be finally taken 
away. Now what is this, but the Gospel itself? or 
where is the difference between this of the Psalmist, 
" He shall redeem Israel from all his sins," and that 
of the Evangelist, " Thou shalt call his name J ESUS, 
for he shall save his people from their sins?" 
Matt.i. 21. The Israel of God, or church univer- 
sal, " hoping" in the same " mercy" and the same 
u plenteous redemption," expecteth the full accom- 



Commentary on Psalm cxxxn. 341 

pi ish merit of this gracious promise, at the second 
advent of her Saviour, when the penalty of sin 
should be taken off, and death be swallowed up in 
victory. 



PSALM CXXXII. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Christmas- Day. 

ARGUMENT. 

This is one of the proper Psalms, which the church 
hath appointed to be used on Christmas- day. It 
containeth, 1 — 5. a petition that Jehovah would 
be mindful of the zeal shown by his servant David, 
in preparing a place for his habitation; 6. the 
exultation of the faithful upon hearing the glad 
tidings, that God would dwell among them ; and, 
7. their resolution to worship at the place which 
he had chosen for that purpose ; 8 — 10. an address 
to Jehovah, used by Solomon at the dedication of 
the temple, whence some have thought him to have 
been the author of the Psalm ; 11 — 18. the sub- 
stance of God's promises made to David and to 
his seed. The whole Psalm is perfectly well 
adapted to the festival of the incarnation, as the 
following comment will, it is hoped, abundantly 
demonstrate. 

1. Lord, remember David, and all his afflictions: 
Israel beseecheth Jehovah to be mindful of those 
sorrows and sufferings, which had been undergone 
by his servant David, ere he attained to the throne, 
and established the ancient church in the beauty 
of holiness. That God would <* remember" the far 
Q 3 



342 Commentary on Psalm cxxxn. 

greater " afflictions" sustained for our sake by Mes- 
siah in the days of his humiliation, when, through 
much tribulation, he accomplished our redemption, 
and entered into his glory, is the petition preferred 
in these words, by us Christians. 

2. How he sware unto the Lord, and vowed unto 
the mighty God of Jacob; 3. Surely I will not 
come into the tabernacle of my house, nor go up 
into my bed ; 4. I will not give sleep to mine eyes, 
or slumber to mine eyelids, 5. Until I find out a 
place for the Lord, an habitation for the mighty 
God of Jacob. 

In all circumstances and situations, David was so- 
licitous for the tabernacle and service of God. Of 
the oath and vow here mentioned, we have, indeed, 
no account in the sacred history; but we read, 
2 Sam. vii. 2. of the uneasiness which he expressed to 
Nathan the prophet, at the thought of his dwelling 
in a palace of cedar, while the ark of God dwelt only 
within the curtains of a tent. Nay, we find, by 
1 Chron. xvi. 43. that he did not bless, and conse- 
quently did not inhabit, his own house, until he had 
brought the ark to Zion, where the temple was after- 
wards erected. He could take neither pleasure nor 
rest, until a place was prepared for the residence of 
J ehovah in the midst of his people ; and from thence- 
forth he gave himself, with unwearied diligence, to 
lay in a plentiful store of the most costly materials, 
silver, gold, and precious stones, which were em- 
ployed by his son and successor Solomon, in con- 
structing the magnificent and mystic edifice. Thus, 
in the covenant of grace, did the Son of God engage 
not to take possession of his heavenly palace, nor to 
enter into his eternal rest, until he had prepared upon 
the earth a palace for the residence of the Lord ; a 
building framed of materials more precious than gold 
and silver, more bright and beautiful than rubies, 
emeralds, and diamonds. All this was planned and 
executed by one and the same person, who first suf- 



Commentary on Psalm cxxxn. 343 

fered in meekness and patience, like David, then 
reigned in glory and peace, like Solomon. The be- 
liever should spare no pains, no time, no thought, 
to find out and prepare in his heart an habitation for 
the God of Jacob, since our Lord hath graciously 
vouchsafed to make this general promise to us all, 
" If a man love me, my Father will love him, and 
we will come unto him, and make our abode with 
him." John xiv. 23. 

6. Xo, we heard of it at EpJiratah : we found it 
in the fields of the wood. 

In other words, as bishop Patrick hath para- 
phrased this verse. " And now, behold, the Lord 
himself, to our great joy, hath told us the very place 
where he will fix his habitation, 1 Chron. xxi. 18. 26. 
in the territory of Bethlehem Ephrata*, Gen. xxxv. 
13. 19. in the fields of that forest, where the angel 
stood and directed David to build an altar to the 
Lord:" 1 Chron. xxi. 18. xxii. 1. Bethlehem 
Ephratah was the city of David ; it was likewise the 
city wherein the Son of David was born, as the pro- 
phet Micah hath foretold : " And thou Bethlehem, 
in the land of Judah, art not the least among the 
cities of Judah, for out of thee shall come a Go- 
vernor, that shall rule my people Israel," Micah 
v. 2. cited by the chief priests and scribes to Herod, 
Matt. ii. 6. Christians, as well as Jews, may there- 
fore say, and upon the festival of Christ's nativity, 
using this Psalm, they do say, " Lo, we heard of it 
at Ephratah :" for there the angels first proclaimed 
the news of the incarnation to the shepherds : " Be- 
hold, 1 bring you good tidings of great joy, which 
shall be to all people ; for unto you is born this day, 
in the city of David, a Saviour, which is Christ, the 

* Jerusalem, as Mr. Merrick observes from Geierus, being 
situated not far from Bethlehem, might be comprehended in 
the region of Ephratah ; or Jim3RX may be rendered, 
'* near Ephratah." 

Q 4 



44 Commentary on Psalm cxxxn. 

Lord :" Luke ii. 10. There was " found" the true 
tabernacle and temple, " not made with hands, the 
place for Jehovah, the habitation for the mighty God 
of Jacob." 

7. We will gointo his tabernacles : we will wor- 
ship at his footstool. 

If this were the resolution of Israelites, who saw 
the incarnation only in type and figure, how much 
more ought it to be ours, who live since the accom- 
plishment of that which was foreshown ; since the 
Word, made flesh, hath dwelt upon the earth, and 
the church hath been erected among the nations ? 
If they worshipped the God of Israel, who then dwelt 
in the holy of holies between the cherubim, shall not 
we worship the same divine person, who, though 
ascended up on high above all heavens, yet hath as- 
sured us, that where two or three are gathered to- 
gether in his name, there is he in the midst of them ? 

8. Arise, O Lord, unto thy rest ; thou } and the 
ark of thy strength. 

When the ark marched before the children of Israel 
to find out a resting-place, it is recorded, Numb. x. 
35,36. that Moses said, " Rise up, Jehovah, and 
let thine enemies be scattered, and let them that 
hate thee flee before thee ;" and when it rested, 
he said, " Return, or bring back, the many thou- 
sands of Israel." The verse before us was used, 
with the two succeeding verses,:by Solomon, as the 
conclusion of his prayer at the dedication of the 
temple, 2 Chron. vi. 41. The purport of the peti- 
tion, therefore, was, that the presence of Jehovah 
might rest upon Zion, and dwell in the house pre- 
pared for it, as the same presence hath since dwelt 
in Christ, and is to be with the Christian church to 
the end of the world. 

9. Let thy priests he clothed with righteousness ; 
and let thy saints shout with joy. 

The ark being placed in the temple, prayer is next 
made for the ministers of religion, that they might, 



Commentary on Psalm cxxxn. 345 

through grace, be invested with righteousness as with 
a garment, and be both covered and adorned with 
a robe of inviolable sanctity; that spiritual joy might 
fill their hearts, and break forth in songs of praise 
to the Lord God of Israel. Let not those, who 
have obtained the evangelical priesthood, be ex- 
ceeded by the sons of Levi, in holiness and ala- 
crity. 

10. For thy servant David's sake, turn not away 
the face of thine anointed. 

Solomon beseecheth God, for the sake of his fa- 
vourite servant David, and the promises made to 
him and his seed, that he would not deny the request 
of David's son, now "anointed'' to be king over 
Israel, and, by so doing, confound, put him to 
shame, or " turn away his face." That this is the 
meaning of the phrase, is plain from 1 Kings ii. 16. 
where Adonijah says to Bathsheba, "And now I ask 
one petition of thee, deny me not;" in the He- 
brew, " turn not away my face." A Christian asketh 
nothing but in the name, and for the sake, of the 
Son of David, Jesus Christ our Lord, in whom all 
the promises are Yea and xlmen, and in whom who- 
soever believeth shall never be confounded, or denied 
that which is really good and profitable for him to 
receive. 

11. The Lord hath sworn in truth unto David; 
he will not turn from it; Of the fruit of thy body 
will I set upon thy throne. 

That this is a prophecy of Messiah, we have the 
authority of St. Peter to say ; Acts ii. 30. " David, 
beiug a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn 
with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, 
according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ 
to sit on his throne," &c. This promise to David 
occurs, 2 Sam. vii. 12. and hath a twofold sense, re- 
lating to Solomon in type and shadow, to Christ in 
truth and substance. See more on Ps. Ixxxix. 3, 4. 

12. Tf thy children will keep my covenant and my 

Q5 



346 Commentary on Psalm cxxxii. 



testimony that 1 shall teach them, their children 
shall also sit upon thy throne for evermore. 

The promises of God to Christ are absolute; but 
to his " children," as well as those of David, they are 
conditional ; so that our interest in them dependeth 
on our faith, our obedience, our perseverance. — 
*' Behold," saith St. Paul, " the goodness and seve- 
rity of God : on them which fell, severity ; but to- 
wards thee, goodness, if thou continue in that good- 
ness ; otherwise, thou also shalt be cut off." Rom. 
xi. 22. 

13. For the Lord hath chosen Zion : he hath 
desired it for his habitation. 14. This is my rest 
for ever : here will I dwell ; for I have desired it. 

How ineffable is the love of God to man, that he 
should use such expressions as these concerning his 
church ! He is pleased to sa} 7 , that it is his desire to 
dwell with us f yet how little do we desire to dwell 
with him ! In Zion he fixed his abode, and there con- 
tinued, till the iniquities of Israel provoked him to 
forsake his holy mountain, and to give up Jerusalem 
for a prey to the spoilers. Since that time, his taber- 
nacle has been removed into the possession of the 
Gentiles. Forsake not this thy new Zion, O God, 
and deliver us not thy people, in like manner, sinful 
as we are, into the hands of the enemy and the 
avenger. 

15. I will abundantly bless her provision : I will 
satisfy her poor with bread. 16. I will also clothe 
her priests with salvation : and her saints shall 
shout aloud for joy. 

That city in which the King of heaven deigns to 
place his throne, can want no manner of thing that 
is good. There will be always plenty of provision 
for the body and for the soul. The poor will be 
satisfied with bread, and to the poor in spirit will 
be given the bread of eternal life. Salvation will 
God appoint for a wall and a bulwark around the 
priests and the temple ; joy and gladness shall be 



Commentary on Psalm cxxxn. 347 

heard within, thanksgiving and the voice of melody. 
What a dreadful reverse of all this do we behold in 
the present state of the once glorious, but now de- 
solated, Jerusalem ! Let not any Christian church, 
after what has happened to that city, be high-minded, 
but let all fear. 

17. There will I make the horn of David to bud; 
I have ordained a lamp for mine anointed. 

Bishop Patrick hath well paraphrased this verse : 
" There, namely, in Jerusalem, will I make the re- 
gal power and majesty of David to put forth itself 
afresh in his royal successors : no sooner shall one 
be extinguished, but another shall shine in such 
splendour, as shall give a lustre to the name of that 
anointed servant of mine, till the great prince, the 
Messiah appear :" then will the horn of salvation be 
raised up in the house of David, to subside the em- 
pires of the world, and to vanquish all opposition, 
then shall the Branch of Jehovah bud into beauty 
and glory upon the earth ; then shall the lamp of 
Israel become a sun of righteousness, burning and 
shining with lustre inextinguishable, to all eternity. 
That this verse doth mystically refer to Christ, the 
Jews confess, as Dr. Hammond has observed. So 
saith R. Saadiah, " The Lamp is the King, which 
illuminates the nations:" and Kimchi, " The Horn 
of David, is the Messias." 

18. His enemies will I clothe with shame ; but 
upon himself shall his crown flourish. 

It is here predicted, that God would blast and 
bring to nothing every design formed to destroy the 
house of David, until King Messiah should arise out 
of it, to sit upon the throne of his father. In him 
all the promises centre, and the kingdom is estab- 
lished for ever : " His enemies," who will not have 
him to reign over them, shall at the last day, be 
" clothed with shame," and everlasting confusion ; 
" but upon himself shall his crown flourish," filling 
heaven and earth with the brightness of its glory. 



348 Commentary on Psalm cxliii. 



PSALM CXLIII. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Ash- Wednesday. 

ARGUMENT. 

This is the seventh and last of the Penitential 
Psalms ; and as we are not informed of any par- 
ticular temporal calamities, which gave occasion 
to its being composed, we shall explain it accord- 
ing to the general use now made of it in the 
church, for which, indeed, it seems to have been 
originally and entirely designed. After the ex- 
ample of David, the penitent, 1. maketh his prayer 
to God for pardon ; 2, acknowledgeth the impos- 
sibility of any man being saved but by grace; 
3, 4. deploreth the lamentable effects of sin ; 5. 
comforteth himself with a retrospect of God's 
mercies of old; and, 6 — 12. prayeth, in a variety 
of expressions, for remission of sin, sanctification, 
and redemption. 

1. Hear my prayer, O Lord, give ear to my sup- 
plications : in thy faithfulness answer me, and in 
thy righteousness. 

When Mary Magdalene washed the feet of Christ 
with her tears, he knew what the petition was which 
her soul desired to have granted, and answered it 
accordingly, before it was made in words, by saying, 
" Thy sins are forgiven thee." Thus the penitent, 
without mentioning the subject of his request, as 
being well known to God, begs that his <e prayer and 
supplication may be heard and answered," agreeably 
to the " faithfulness and righteousness of Jehovah." 



Commentary on Psalm cxliii. 349 

2. And enter not into judgment with thy servant : 
for in thy sight shall no man living be justified. 

In the first verse, the suppliant appealed to the 
promises of God, and his fidelity in performing 
them. Here he urgeth the fallen, sinful, wretched 
state of human nature, which hath rendered it abso- 
lutely impossible that any son of Adam can be saved, 
should God " enter into judgment with him," and 
exact the punishment due to his offences according 
to the LAW, instead of pardoning them by an act of 
grace. The thoughts of such a trial are enough to 
appal the soul of the best man living, to make his 
flesh tremble, and all his bones shake, as if he stood 
at the foot of Sinai, and beheld Jehovah ready to 
break forth upon him in the flame of devouring fire. 

3. For the enemy hath persecuted my soul; he 
hath smitten my life down to the ground ; he hath 
made me to dwell in darkness, as those that have 
been long dead. 4. Therefore is my spirit over- 
whelmed within me ; my heart within me is desolate. 

We have an " enemy" who " persecutes" us with 
unrelenting malice; he iS smites our life down to the 
ground," as often as we yield to temptation, and fall 
from our state of holiness, to grovel in base and 
earthly desires ; he " makes us to dwell in darkness," 
when he has thus withdrawn us from the light of 
heaven, which before illuminated us, while we walked 
in it; the spiritual life, for a time, is extinguished, 
and we become, for all the purposes of faith and 
charity, "like those that have been long dead. — 
Therefore," at the consideration of this our sad 
estate, when God has enabled us to see and know it, 
our " spirit is overwhelmed within us," with remorse, 
anxiety, and despondency; and " our heart within 
us," deprived of the comforts of conscience, the joys 
of the Spirit, and the presence of the Beloved, "is 
desolate," forlorn, miserable. To rescue the sinner 
from this disconsolate and lost condition, our blessed 
Saviour was forsaken on the cross ; " his spirit was 



850 Commentary on Psalm CXLIII. 

overwhelmed within him, and his heart within him 
was desolate; the enemy" was suffered to " smite 
his" precious " life down to the ground," and he 
u dwelt," for three days, "in darkness, as the men 
that have been long dead." 

5. I remember the days of old ; I meditate on all 
thy ivorks ; I muse on the work of thy hands. 

When sin has thus laid us low, and, as it were, 
slain and entombed us, we begin to revive and to 
arise from the dead, through hope of forgiveness and 
restoration to the divine favour, by *' remembering 
the days of old, and meditating on all the works'' 
of love and mercy, which Jehovah then wrought to- 
wards those who were sinners like ourselves. While 
we " muse" on such instances of his goodness, the 
reflection is obvious, Is he not still the same gracious 
God P Will he not do as much for us, upon our re- 
pentance, as he hath formerly done for others, upon 
theirs ? " Let us arise, and go to our Father !" 

6. I stretch forth my hands unto thee ; my soul 
thirsteth after thee as a thirsty land. 

Prayer is the voice of Faith. The sinner who 
views his situation, and believes, on having consi- 
dered God's works of old, that he shall be delivered 
out of it, will soon "strelch forth his hands," in sup- 
plication to heaven. His soul will gasp and pant 
after that grace and meircy which descends from above, 
like the rain in its season, to bestow refreshment, 
beauty, and fertility, on a parched and " thirsty land." 
While we receive this verse, let us not be unmindful 
of Him, whose hands were often stretched forth in 
prayer for his people, and whose soul thirsted after 
our salvation, even then, when he felt extremity of 
bodily thirst on the cross. 

7. Hear me speedily , O Lord : my spirit faileth ; 
hide not thy face from me, lest I be like unto them 
that go down into the pit. 

These words would come with propriety from the 



Commentary on Psalm cxliii. 351 

mouth of one in clanger of temporal death. They 
are no less proper in the mouth of him who is in 
danger of death eternal. Rather, they receive an 
additional force and energy when used in this latter 
sense. 

8. Cause me to hear thy loving kindness in the 
morning ; for in thee do I trust : cause me to know 
the way wherein I should walk ; for I lift up my 
soul unto thee. 

The penitent prayeth, that he may "hear the 
voice of God's loving kindness," speaking pardon 
and peace to his soul, " in the morning" speedily 
and early, after the long dark night of fear and sor- 
row through which he is passing. This he hopes, 
because, disclaiming all other reliance, he placeth his 
confidence in God alone ; f in thee do I trust." Nor 
is he only solicitous for the forgiveness of what is 
past, but for future direction in the course of duty ; 
" show thou me the way wherein I should walk." 
And to the end that he may follow such directions, 
he hath withdrawn his affections from things below, 
and set them on things above; " I lift up my soul 
unto thee." 

9. Deliver me, O Lord, from mine enemies: J 
fee unto thee to hide me. 10. Teach me to do thy 
will; for thou art my God: thy Spirit is good ; lead 
me } or, let thy good Spirit lead me, into the land of 
uprightness. 

He continueth to pray that he may be " delivered 
from his enemies," the world, the flesh, and the 
devil, from whose temptations he " fleeth," by re- 
pentance and faith, to the Almighty, to " hide" and 
protect him. He requesteth to be fully instructed 
in the " will" of him, whom, as his Lord and his 
" God," he hath determined to serve and obey. But 
conscious of his own inability to do the will of Jeho- 
vah, even when known, he entreateth the good Spirit 
of God to " lead" him out of the mazes of error and 



352 Commentary on Psalm cxliii. 

the pollutions of vice, into the pleasant *' land" of 
truth and holiness *. 

11. Quicken me, O Lord, for thy name's sake ; 
for thy righteousness' sake, bring my soul out of 
trouble. 12. And of thy mercy cut off mine enemies, 
and destroy all them that afflict my soul : for I am 
thy servant. 

The verbs in these two last verses, as Dr. Ham- 
mond hath noted, should be rendered in the future ; 
" Thou shalt quicken," &c. and then the Psalm will 
end, as usual, with an act of faith and assurance, 
that all those mercies which have been asked shall 
be obtained; that God, for the sake of his "name," 
and his "righteousness," of his glory, and his faith- 
fulness in the performance of his promises, will not 
fail to be favourable and gracious to his servants, 
" quickening" them, even when dead in trespasses 
and sins, and bringing them, by degrees, "out of 
ail their troubles ;' 5 going forth with them to the 
battle against their spiritual " enemies," and enabling 
them to vanquish the authors of their " affliction" 
and misery, to mortify the flesh, and to overcome the 
world; that so they may triumph with their Re- 
deemer, in the day when he shall likewise quicken 
their mortal bodies, and put all enemies under their 
feet. 



* Mr. Merrick mentions the similar phrase of nthov aX»j~ 
G £ »a?, and Aei/xwv kTwQsicu;, among the Greeks. Or yiK 
may signify " the land that is plain and direct, even and 
straight," where he might pursue his intended course of piety 
and goodness, without fear of meeting with obstructions in 
the way, or danger of wandering out of it. 



Commentary on Psalm cxlv. 353 



PSALM CXLV. 

One of the proper Psalms appointed for 
Whitsunday. 

ARGUMENT. 

Hitherto, in this divine book, we have been present- 
ed with checkered scenes of danger and deliver- 
ance, distress and misery. The voice of complaint 
hath sometimes been succeeded by that of thanks- 
giving ; and praise, at other times, hath terminated 
in prayer. But now, as if the days of mourning 
in Zion were ended, we hear no more of Messiah 
as a man of sorrows ; or of the church, as de- 
spised and afflicted, after the same example in the 
world. Henceforth we seem not to be upon 
earth, but in heaven, mingled with celestial spirits 
around the throne, and singing, as in the following 
Psalm, 1, 2. the praises of our God and King ; ex- 
tolling, 3. his greatness, 4, his might, 5. his glory, 
6, 7. his justice, 8, 9. his mercy ; 10 — 13. the 
majesty of his kingdom, and, 14 — 21. all his ado- 
rable perfections, and wondrous works. This is 
an alphabetical Psalm. The verse, which should 
begin with the letter Nun, is wanting. But, as 
Dr. Hammond hath observed, it is not uncom- 
mon for one letter, or more, to be left out in an 
alphabetical Psalm, as in Ps. xxv. where "1 being 
twice repeated, p is certainly omitted. We shall 
therefore content ourselves, with what we find in 
the original Hebrew, and in the Chaldee, without 
inserting the verse which is now read in the LXX. 



354 Commentary on Psalm cxlv. 

and other translations. Bishop Patrick mentions 
a saying of the ancient Hebrews, taken notice of 
by Valentine Schindler, that " He could not fail 
to be a child of the world to come, who would say 
this Psalm three times every day." Perhaps they 
who, while they chant it in full choir, enter tho- 
roughly into the spirit of it, do experience as lively 
a foretaste of the next world, as can be experi- 
enced in this. 

1. / will extol thee, my God, O King ; and will 
bless thy name for ever and ever. 2. Every day 
will 1 bless thee ; and I will praise thy name for ever 
and ever. 

The same divine person, who was, in a peculiar 
manner, the " God" and " King" of Israel, now 
standeth in those relations to the Gentile Christian 
church, and by her is " extolled" in the words of this 
Psalm, originally composed and used for that purpose 
among the Israelites. Christ is our " God," who 
hath saved us according to his covenant and pro- 
mise ; he is our " King," who hath set up the univer- 
sal and everlasting kingdom, foretold by Daniel and 
the other prophets ; who hath all power in heaven 
and earth ;" and who must reign till he hath put 
all enemies under his feet and swallowed up death in 
victory." In the mean time it is the daily employ^ 
ment of us, his redeemed subjects and servants, to 
chant forth the praises of his saving and glorious 
te name," with which the church, on earth, and in 
heaven, will resound " for ever and ever." 

8. Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised ; 
and his greatness is unsearchable. 4. One genera- 
tion shall praise thy works unto another, and shall 
declare thy mighty acts. 

The " greatness" of Jehovah, whether we consider 
it as relating to his essence or- his works, is never 

6 



Commentary on Psalm CXLV. 355 

to be fully comprehended by bis saints, whose de- 
light it is to contemplate " the breadth, and length, 
and depth, and height," Ephes. iii. 18., the extent 
and duration of his being and his kingdom, the pro- 
fundity of his counsels, and the sublimity of his 
power and glory. These are the inexhaustible sub- 
jects of divine meditation, transmitted from age to 
age. And as the greatness of God our Saviour hath 
no bounds, so his praises should have no end, nor 
should the voice of thanksgiving ever cease in the 
church. As " one generation" drops it, <f another" 
should take it up, and prolong the delightful strain, 
till the sun and the moon shall withdraw their light, 
and the stars fall extinguished from their orbs. 

5. I will speak of the glorious honour of thy ma. 
jesty, and of thy wondrous vjorks. 6. And men 
shall speak of the might of thy terrible acts : and I 
will declare thy greatness. 7. They shall abundantly 
utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall 
sing of thy righteousness. 

Those works of God, which demand to be cele- 
brated by the tongues of men, are here divided into 
three kinds. First, such as declare his glory and ex- 
cite our admiration whenever we behold them. Of 
this sort are the shining frame of the heavens, and 
all the bodies which move therein ; the earth, with its 
furniture without, and its contents within ; the mag- 
nificent and stupendous ocean, which flows around 
it ; the different tribes of animals inhabiting both the 
one and the other ; and, above all, the construction 
of man, the lord of this lower world. Under the 
second class of God's works are ranged all those 
which the Psalmist style th his " terrible acts," or the 
exertions of his power against his enemies ; such as, 
the destruction of the old world by water ; of Sodom 
and Gomorrah by fire ; Pharaoh and his host in the 
Red Sea ; of the Canaanitish nations by the sword ; 
and the victory gained over sin and death by the re- 
surrection of Christ. In the third rank stand those 



356 Commentary on Psalm cxlv. 

works which have proceeded from the " goodness" of 
God, and his ** righteousness" in the performance of 
his promises, and among these we may reckon all 
the different species of provision, which have been 
made by providence for the bodies of men in the 
world, and by grace for their souls in the church. 
On any of these subjects meditation cannot be long 
employed, without breaking forth in towonder, grati- 
tude, and praise. 

'8. The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion ; 
slow to anger, and of great mercy. 9. The Lord 
is good to all : and his tender mercies are over all 
his ivorks. 

Mercy hath misery for its object, and is that at- 
tribute towards which the eyes of a fallen world must 
naturally be turned. The Psalmist hath, accordingly, 
introduced her last, with great pomp and splendour, 
seated in her triumphal chariot, and invested with a 
supremacy over all the works of God. She is above 
the heavens, and over all the earth, so that the whole 
creation findeth that refuge under the shadow of her 
wings, of which by reason of man's transgression, it 
standeth in need, The original word for " his ten- 
der mercies," is TOJT1, the singular of which, OrD? 
signifies the " womb." The " mercies" of God to- 
wards men are, therefore, represented by this word, 
to be like those of a mother towards the child of her 
" womb/' And this is the very similitude which he 
himself hath made use of, in that most affecting and 
comforting passage of the prophecy of Isaiah xliK. 
15. : " Can a woman forget her sucking child, that 
she should not have compassion on the son of her 
womb ? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget 
thee." — And now, what follows ? Are such " ten- 
der mercies" in God ? And are they " over all his 
works ?" Why then, 

10. All thy ivorks shall praise thee, O Lord ; and 
thy saints shall bless thee. 11. TJiey shall speak of 
the glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power ; 



Commentary on Psalm cxlt. 357 

12. To make known to the sons of men his mighty 
acts, and the glorious majesty of his kingdom, 13. 
Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy do- 
minion endureth throughout all generations. 

As " all the works" of God, in their several ways, 
make a due return for the mercy vouchsafed unto 
them, and set forth his glory ; so more especially 
ought this to be done by man, who is the principal 
party concerned in the fall and redemption. The 
" saints" are the subjects of Messiah's kingdom; 
and of that kingdom it is their duty to publish to the 
world the blessings and the glories, to the end that 
when these are made known, the nations may be 
thereby induced to submit their hearts to so graci- 
ous a sceptre, and the 'dominion of Christ may be- 
come as universal in its extent, as it is everlasting 
in its duration. 

14. The Lord upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth 
up all those that be bowed down. 

After having proclaimed the glory and eternity of 
the kingdom, the Prophet draws a character of the 
King, who, in the execution of his regal and pastoral 
office, is ever mindful of the necessities of his sub- 
jects. To those who, like Peter on the water, are 
sinking under temptation, he stretched out his saving 
arm, supporting and " upholding" them by his grace ; 
and to those who, like the woman in the Gospel, 
have long been "bowed down" with sin or sorrow, 
he holdeth forth a pardon, "raising" and setting 
them upright again by his mercy. The case is the 
same with regard to outward distresses, from which 
God either preserves or delivers his people as he 
sees best for them. 

15. The eyes of all wait upon thee ; and thou 
givest them their meat in due season. 16. Thou 
openest thy hand, and satisfiest the desire of every 
living thing. 

What a just and beautiful picture is here presented 
to view ! We see the whole animal world assembled 

5 



358 Commentary on Psalm CXLV. 

before us, with their eyes fixed on the great King 
and Father of all things, like those of a flock on 
their shepherd, when he enters the field, in time of 
dearth, with provender for them. From the same 
divine person, as the Saviour of men, as the King, 
Father, and Pastor of the church, do believers, with 
earnest expectation, wait for the food of eternal life. 
And neither one nor the other look and wait in vain. 
To both he giveth their meat in due season : " he 
openeth his hand, and satisfieth the desire of every 
living thing." 

17. The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and 
holy, or, good, merciful, in all his works. 

Thus, "in all his ways," or dispensations towards 
his creatures, whether in nature or in grace, " Je- 
hovah is righteous," faithful, and just in extending 
his promised care, by making due provision for their 
wants ; and " all his works," which, from the be- 
ginning of the world, he hath wrought in behalf of 
the sons of men, are full of " mercy and loving 
kindness." 

18. The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon 
him, to all that call upon him in truth. 19. He will 
fulfil the desire of them that fear him : he also will 
hear their cry, and will save them. 

It is our happiness to have a King, who is not, 
like earthly princes, difficult of access, but one of 
whom the meanest subject may at any time obtain 
an audience, and be certain of having his request 
granted, if it be made " in truth," without wavering, 
and without hypocrisy, with humble confidence, and 
with unwearied constancy, expecting salvation from 
God, from none but him, and from him only in the 
way of duty and obedience: "he will fulfil the desire 
of them that fear him." 

20. The Lord preserveth all them that love him: 
hut all the wicked will he destroy. 

To protect his subjects, and destroy their enemies, 
is the finishing part of the regal character, as here 



Commentary on Psalm cxlv. 359 

drawn from its great original in " the King of saints." 
By his grace he now preserveth us from innumerable 
dangers and temptations, and gradually destroyeth 
sin in us : and by his power he will hereafter execute, 
in the fullest and most extensive sense, this part of 
his office, " when the wicked shall be consumed with 
the spirit of his mouth, and destroyed with the 
brightness of his coming." Then the bodies of the 
righteous, preserved to a joyful resurrection, shall be 
reunited to their souls, and both together, perfected 
and glorified, shall reign and shine with him for 
ever. Thus the Lord Jesus Christ " preserveth all 
that love him." and maketh good his promise, 
" There shall not an hair of your head perish." Luke 
xxi. 18. 

21. My mouth shall speak the praise of the 
Lord : and let all flesh bless his holy name for ever 
and ever. 

The Psalmist, having now given the reasons why 
he had resolved to " extol his God and King, and 
to bless his name for ever and ever," concludes with 
repeating his resolution, and exhorts all the world to 
follow his example, in time and eternity. 



THE END. 



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